CHURCHES OWE MANZINI COUNCIL E1.7M IN RATES

MBABANE – “Give to Caesar what belongs to Caesar, and to God what belongs to God.”

These are the words used by Jesus Christ as part of his response to an attempt by the Herodians and Pharisees to trap Him on the issue of the rightness of paying taxes. As of March 31, 2023, there were Christian churches and organisations that did not totally live up to what Jesus said, as they had been listed by the Manzini Muncipal Council as having defaulted on the payment of property rates. The amount that these churches and Christian organisations reportedly owed the municipality totalled E1 711 055.62. Municipal property rates are the financial liabilities that each immovable property owner pays to the municipality, where his/her immovable property (land and buildings) is located.

The Free Evangelical Assemblies (FEA) was listed as the one with the largest debt, totalling E638 624.39, which was outstanding in respect of the property rates. This amount is for two properties: one of which is situated at Extension 17 and owed E567 456.86; and the other is a portion of a farm with the ERF 70849051 and owed E71 167.53. In real estate, an ERF(or erven for plural) is the legal term used in Eswatini, Namibia and South Africa (SA) to describe a piece of land registered in a deeds registry as an ERF, lot, plot or stand. The term is said to be of Afrikaans origin. ERF means every piece of land registered as an ERF, lot, plot or stand in a deeds registry, and includes every defined portion, not intended to be a public place, of a piece of land laid out as a township, whether or not it has been formally recognised, approved or proclaimed as such.

pertained

The Salesian Society was another Christian organisation listed among the rates defaulters, with an outstanding debt of E360 221.75, and this pertained to property that is a portion of a farm with the ERF 70278000. Also in the list of defaulters was the Assemblies of God, which was said to owe the Manzini Council an amount of E202 670.09 for property situated at Moneni, that has the ERF 380009006. The Swaziland Diocesan Trust Board, which is believed to be linked to the Anglican Church, is another body that was listed among the defaulters, with a pending debt of E79 668.37 in respect of farm land situated at Sterkstroom and bears the ERF 71251999. This is not the only property that the Board has reportedly defaulted on; there was also another reported outstanding debt of E63 653.76, in respect of another farm property, also at Sterkstroom, with the ERF 520046000. The total amount that the Swaziland Diocesan Trust Board reportedly owed for these two properties, therefore, is E143 322.13.

list

One other church organisation that was on the list was the Kukhanya Okusha Zion Church, which reportedly owed an amount of E73 053.75 for property situated at Extension 10, with the ERF 251204000. There is also the Manzini City Seventh Day Adventist (SDA) Church, which was listed for reportedly owing the municipality an amount of E55 714.40, for property at Extension 5, with the ERF 130526000. The Christian Family Centre is another entity that was listed as having an outstanding debt of E42 289.84, for a portion of a farm with the ERF 70267004. The Council of Swaziland Churches - a fellowship of churches that confess Christ as Lord and Savior according to the scriptures - was also reported to have an outstanding debt of E35 303.82 for property in Manzini Town, with ERF 370142000. The St. John Apostolic Faith Mission was also on the list for reportedly being in rates default amounting to E34 992.69, for property situated at Fairview Township, with the ERF 40214000. Another organisation on the list was Light of the Nation Christian, which was placed there for a reported debt of E21 469.23 in respect of property situated at Ngwane Park Township, with the ERF 441268000.

The Lutheran Church in Southern Africa also reportedly owed an amount of E17 572.87, in respect for farm property with the ERF 70125029. The Christian Family Centre International reportedly had an outstanding debt totaling E17 780.93, in respect of two properties: One is in Extension 15, with the ERF 361445000, and owed E10 611.94; and the other is also in Extension 15, with the ERF 36144600 and owed E7 118.99. The Swaziland Conference of Churchs, which is the national umbrella organisation for evangelicals in Eswatini, whose mandate is to unify and empower churches to make Disciples of Christ, reportedly had an outstanding rates debt totaling E26 094.82.

properties

This pertained to two properties: one is situated at Extension 11, with the ERF 281225000 and reportedly owed E15 059.13; the other is situated in Manzini Town, with the ERF 370175001 and was said to owe E11 035.69. The Bible Society of Swaziland, which recently hosted its annual knockout soccer tournament, involving four top flight clubs, that was won by Mbabane Highlanders Football Club, also reportedly default on the rates payment for an amount of E12 793.75. This pertained to property situated in Manzini Town, with the ERF 370115000. Liberty Worship Centre Ministry was also on the rates defaulters’ list with an outstanding amount of E12 734.98, in respect of farm property with the ERF 79273007. Other church organisations listed as having defaulted on the rates payment are the Emmanuel Evangelical Church (E5 862.72) and the God Lives Trust (E4 527.46). The list of the rates defaulters was issued through a notice that was published in a Government Gazette dated July 21, 2023.

The notice was given in terms of Section 31(3) of the Rating Act of 1995, which provides: “If the owner of any property fails to pay the rate or any part thereof, owing in respect of the property, on or before the expiry of one month from the date on which such rate becomes due, a final demand in writing shall be made by the collector of rates and served on the owner requiring him to pay the amount stated the rein within fourteen days of the service thereof.”

owing

The municipality said failure to pay would result in legal proceedings in terms of Section 32(2), at a cost to be borne by the ratepayer, in order to recover the rates owing. Sections 32(2) reads: The proceedings for the recovery of rates shall comply with the following:
(a) the local authority shall file with the clerk of the court a statement certified by the treasurer, on oath, setting forth the amount of rates payable by the owner;
(b) a copy of such statement shall be posted by the treasurer to the owner on the same day as the statement is filed with the clerk of such court;
(c) the statement referred to in paragraphs (a) and (b) shall contain a copy of the provisions of this subsection and sections 29, 30 and 31; and
(d) upon receipt of such statement, the clerk of such court shall enter judgment in the records of such court in favour of the local authority against the owner. The ratepayers have also been reminded of the obligation to forward their information to Council as required by Section 37 (4 – 5) of the Act, which states that ‘the owner of any immovable property shown in the valuation roll shall notify the local authority of his postal address within two weeks of acquiring such property and, hereafter, within two weeks of any change of his postal address’.
An owner who fails to comply with this shall be found guilty of an offence.

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