Pensioner in long battle to get bank to give him back his Athlone home

CAPE TOWN - A pensioner has been fighting for nearly a decade to get his Lawrence Road home in Athlone back after what he claims was an “unjust, illegal eviction and public auction” by Standard Bank.

Abdurahman Slamang, 68, says he and his family were evicted from their home “without prior knowledge”.

According to Slamang, Standard Bank was the property bondholder which obtained a summary judgment order against him and “falsely accused me of being in breach of the bond payments”.

“I was under debt review at the time. My account had not been in arrears and I never missed the payments, which I can prove with bank statements and these payments were made timeously. However, the bank went ahead with a summary judgement against me. This hearing then went ahead without prior notice directly to me.

“I wasn’t even given a chance to represent myself in court. My home had gone on public auction on August 11, 2011, without my knowledge and on January 16, 2013 I was evicted from my home by a sheriff of the court and it was such a heartbreaking scene as our stuff was put out on the field and I had no way of fighting against it.

“I am in court fighting for justice because they did not have a (certified rescission) order in place and should not have gone ahead with the eviction and auctioning of my home,” said Slamang.

Last week, Slamang had gone back to the high court and represented himself, contesting the legality of the bank’s actions which has left him and his wife “practically homeless” as they have had to move between homes, currently living with family in Saldanha.

“They have put me in an impossible financial situation without any paperwork to legally show what they had done was proper.

“I want justice and I want my home back as well as damages that I had suffered after losing my home. I do not want this swept under the mat by the banks because it was illegal and unjust,” said Slamang.

Standard Bank PR spokesperson Kgaogelo Mohlala confirmed a summary judgment was made against Slamang on 29 March 2011 and remained in place after Slamang’s rescission applications were dismissed in the high court, the Supreme Court of Appeal and Constitutional Court while a damages claim has since been filed by Slamang.

“The debt review proceedings in respect of Slamang’s debt had terminated prior to the granting of the summary judgment as required in terms of legislation and court procedures… Accordingly, having been fully ventilated in the court process, the matter is now final and the summary judgment remains in place.

“The matter that is currently before the Western Cape High Court is a separate damages action brought by Slamang against (the bank).

“This matter will be assessed in accordance with the required court procedures.

“On 1 March 2022 Standard Bank’s application to have the matter dismissed by the court on its merits was postponed by mutual agreement between the parties in order to allow Slamang to seek legal representation or advice.

“We confirm that Standard Bank continues to defend the matter in the ordinary course and will respect the outcome of the court processes,” said Mohlala.

Cape Times