Cape Town – The City of Cape Town is squaring off with Police Minister Bheki Cele.
The minister halted filming of an international TV commercial on Camps Bay beach, saying it was in breach of lockdown regulations.
The company was in possession of a permit for the three-day shoot and lost millions of rands after Cele pulled the plug.
However, the minister insists that while the film company may have a permit from the City of Cape Town, the production was not compliant with what is permitted on beaches as stipulated in the Covid-19 regulations.
Cele did not elaborate on the details of the transgression.
The city says the film company complied with all the permissions and protocols.
The regulations state that no festivals, live music and live performances are allowed on the beaches that are open.
But the city says filming is not a recreational activity, it is work and is allowed, adding that it contributes billions of rand to the Western Cape economy.
Now the city is heading to the Cape Town High Court to seek an urgent application to interdict the minister from preventing film shoots from taking place on Cape Town’s beaches.
