Cape Town Mayor Geordin Hill-Lewis said yesterday that the City of Cape Town would vigorously oppose what he called a politicised application by the South African Human Rights Commission (SAHRC) to interdict the release of 49 municipal sites.

“The SAHRC is behaving like a political party, not a credible Chapter 9 organisation. If they want to throw away their credibility trying to stop any policy differentiation that delivers better public outcomes in Cape Town, fine, but we will oppose them vigorously,” Hill-Lewis said.

He said the interdict attempt “comes some six months after the SAHRC’s initial enquiries were addressed by the City,” and “appears more like electioneering coming a week before elections”.

The SAHRC said in a statement issued on Wednesday that it had instituted proceedings in the Western Cape Division of the High Court to interdict the transfer of the 49 properties, “sold by way of public auction in February 2026, pending a review of the decision by the City of Cape Town to dispose of same”.

The commission said it “was particularly concerned that the proposed disposals were not subject to legally enforceable conditions requiring purchasers to provide affordable or social housing”. It said it met Hill-Lewis in February and asked that the auction be postponed. “The City declined the request, and the auction proceeded,” it said.

The SAHRC is also asking the court to declare the decisions “unconstitutional, unlawful, irrational and invalid”.

The City said that while the SAHRC claims its application is affordable housing-related, the 49 sites “do in fact include 28 residential-zoned properties to serve the local demand for housing”, in areas including Mitchells Plain, Maitland, Goodwood, Kraaifontein, Somerset West, and Durbanville.

“Public land is a finite resource, and its disposal has lasting consequences for the residents of Cape Town,” the SAHRC said.