Following ActionSA’s repeated calls to place Knysna under administration and mounting pressure from the public and civic organisations, ActionSA welcomes the issuance of a formal notice of intention to intervene by the MEC for Local Government, Anton Bredell, in terms of section 139(1)(a) of the Constitution of the Republic of South Africa.
A precursor to placing the crisis-ridden municipality under administration, this long-awaited intervention comes at a point when service delivery has all but collapsed, plaguing residents of the ailing town. Consequently, the Western Cape Government had to file criminal charges against Knysna Municipality for failing to adequately respond and implement waste removal plans.
In accordance with the detailed 28-page letter issued by the MEC, the municipality has until the 23rd of April 2024, to respond to the letter, informing the MEC whether it intends to remedy the situation and outlining its proposed actions to achieve this, at the expense of the Municipal Council.
We note that on the 2nd of April 2, 2024, the council went into recess until after the elections, and all council functions currently rest with the Mayor and Municipal Manager.
Given the urgency of this crisis, ActionSA will closely monitor whether the councillors, who are drawing salaries during recess, will convene an urgent council meeting to address this matter as requested by the Province or whether the ANC-led coalition of chaos will simply neglect to respond and attempt to evade alleviating the suffering of the town’s residents, because it may interfere with their paid holiday.
ActionSA believes that the governance failures of the Knysna Municipality do not come as a surprise, but rather represent a slow progression toward the needs and interests of residents being placed last, a trend that began under the previous DA-led administration.
ActionSA will continue to monitor every development arising from Knysna to ensure that residents’ needs are placed first and that service delivery can be restored to a functional state.
Knysna Crisis: ActionSA Welcomes Long-Awaited Steps Toward Placing the Ailing Municipality Under Administration
Following ActionSA’s repeated calls to place Knysna under administration and mounting pressure from the public and civic organisations, ActionSA welcomes the issuance of a formal notice of intention to intervene by the MEC for Local Government, Anton Bredell, in terms of section 139(1)(a) of the Constitution of the Republic of South Africa.
A precursor to placing the crisis-ridden municipality under administration, this long-awaited intervention comes at a point when service delivery has all but collapsed, plaguing residents of the ailing town. Consequently, the Western Cape Government had to file criminal charges against Knysna Municipality for failing to adequately respond and implement waste removal plans.
In accordance with the detailed 28-page letter issued by the MEC, the municipality has until the 23rd of April 2024, to respond to the letter, informing the MEC whether it intends to remedy the situation and outlining its proposed actions to achieve this, at the expense of the Municipal Council.
We note that on the 2nd of April 2, 2024, the council went into recess until after the elections, and all council functions currently rest with the Mayor and Municipal Manager.
Given the urgency of this crisis, ActionSA will closely monitor whether the councillors, who are drawing salaries during recess, will convene an urgent council meeting to address this matter as requested by the Province or whether the ANC-led coalition of chaos will simply neglect to respond and attempt to evade alleviating the suffering of the town’s residents, because it may interfere with their paid holiday.
ActionSA believes that the governance failures of the Knysna Municipality do not come as a surprise, but rather represent a slow progression toward the needs and interests of residents being placed last, a trend that began under the previous DA-led administration.
ActionSA will continue to monitor every development arising from Knysna to ensure that residents’ needs are placed first and that service delivery can be restored to a functional state.