OUTA welcomes scrapping of Johannesburg CCTV by-law

JOHANNESBURG - The Organisation Undoing Tax Abuse (OUTA) has welcomed the Johannesburg City Council’s decision to scrap its controversial CCTV by-law.

The regulation, introduced earlier this year, faced multiple legal challenges that prevented it from being enforced.

It sought to regulate and register private CCTV cameras installed in homes and businesses across Johannesburg. It also required owners of cameras capturing public spaces, such as roads, to register them with the city and obtain permission before removing or adjusting them.

OUTA’s Executive, Stefanie Fick, said repealing the by-law was a victory for residents.

“Repealing this CCTV by-law is definitely a victory for common sense. It was never really about safety. It was about squeezing residents for money. We want the City of Joburg to focus on what really matters: fixing the water crisis, broken traffic lights and potholes, not cooking up schemes to milk residents who are already paying high rates for failing services. Bye-bye by-law.”