Dear Readers,
 |
| Rose Scott |
As far back as 2010 I started a
campaign on my blog to get the Johannesburg
Around that time it published a report
in its Money and Careers section which told readers about the danger signs they
should look for in advertisements offering investment opportunities.
One of these was: If it seems too good to be true it probably is. Among the others
was: Terms such as ‘act quickly’ or
‘limited space available’ puts pressure on investors to make hasty decisions.
It was ages before the paper appeared to have stopped
taking these kinds of come-ons, which the Group’s one time Ombudsman Joe
Latakgomo described as “eroding the public’s trust in newspapers.” He added
that “Advertising that makes claims which are patently exaggerated, impact on
consumer confidence.”
This was in an article he wrote headed Beware of dubious adverting claims, which appeared after my
complaints to the Sunday Times.
At one stage when these types of ads were still being
carried the paper undertook to ensure that the full contact details, as well as
the physical address of the advertiser would have to be included.
In January this year a prominent ad appeared in
the Classified section of the paper. It had some of the same characteristics
the paper had warned its readers about all those years ago. It claimed that if
you invested a minimum of R350 000 up to a maximum of R1 050 000 you could
double your money in two years.
 |
| One of the Sunday Times advertisements |
The
promoters were giving presentations at Johannesburg
The contact details were equally limited being only a Red
Brick Enterprises email address.
The paper had this inconspicuous warning in the business section nowhere near the Classified section or any other advertising. The management seems to think that this will absolve it from any responsibility to anybody who might be taken by ads that are not kosher.
When I tackled Jyoti Govind, National Sales Manager –
Direct, Classified & Legals for the Tiso Blackstar Group, the owner of the Sunday Times, about this, she replied on
11 February: “Yes you are correct in saying that we had stopped many of the
bogus type investment opportunity
advertising sometime back. However, this advert was placed due to the fact that
the investors have to attend a presentation prior to committing to investing.”
How this made the ‘too good to be true’ claims any better
only she would know.
“I do apologise on behalf of the salesperson,” she went on,
“for not having a telephone number or physical address in the advertisement.
Going forward we will ensure that all the correct details appear. This advert
appeared over three weeks and yesterday was the last day of inserting.”
Although she said she was sorry for what happened she inexplicably
refused to give me the missing details “due to a confidentiality clause.” She
undertook to ask the client to contact me.
Soon afterwards Bev Peinke emailed me saying: “We are
currently developing a cutting edge estate of 344 apartments along the Garden Route
Their shareholders, she said, would be in Johannesburg
“We are limiting the number of seats to 15 which will be
allocated on a first come, first serve basis.”
She evidently thought I was a potential investor, although
I had made it clear to Govind that I was journalist who had a blog.
Bev’s initial answers to my questions gave the impression
that she had an interest in Red Brick Enterprises that is proposing to develop
an estate called Yikusasa, but she was actually the “executive PA” to Rose
Scott Redbrick’s Financial Director.
When I asked Rose how people were expected to double their
money in two years as Bev had referred to it as being for “long term
investors,” she told me the ad was correct, but Bev was not.
The
18 ha development site is in the Plettenberg
Bay township of Kwanokuthula
 |
| What the proposed apartment blocks will look like |
There were plans to have the offices of the Bitou Municipality
According to Scott in her development, which is being sold
off-plan, investors were being offered an opportunity to purchase two bedroomed
units at a 50% discount on the initial selling price. The proposed selling
prices of the units given on the Yikusasa (the future in isiXhosa)website are one bedroomed from R575 000;
two bed R713 000 and three bed R813 000. They are between 50 and 75 sq m.
“We limited the opportunity to a maximum of three options
to buy to spread the risk and to encourage participation from a broader base of
investors,” she stated. “The offer is to secure the funding to build furnished
show units so that purchasers can see what they are buying.”
The head of one of Plett’s largest estate agencies had this
to say when I told him what the Sunday
Times’ advertisement was promising: “There is nothing in the world that can
give you that kind of return.”
“Several people are prepared to
take that risk based on the facts and figures presented to them,” Scott
countered
The two and three level blocks of flats will be built in
seven stages in an area earmarked for middle to lower income housing.
At this stage all the planning requirements have not been
finalised and the promotional video tells us that construction will start in
February, but it doesn’t say which February.
 |
| Yikusasa's location |
So those hoping to double there money in two years have to
be supreme optimists, especially when the country’s economy is in tatters.
If anybody should know how unlikely to be true this
newspaper advertisement is, it is Rose Scott, because not only is she an
accountant in Plett, but she also claims to be the founder of what she calls
Better Business Practice.
Regards
Jon,
a Consumer Watchdog and the Poor Man’s Press Ombudsman, who hopes that the Sunday Times will finally put ethics
before money and stop promoting investment opportunities that are too good to
be true.
P.S. Bev
Peinke told me she ceased working for Red Brick Enterprises on February 19. Her
husband owns The Pie Shop in Plett and had nothing to do with Red Brick.
No comments:
Post a Comment