Update
GRAAFF-REINET NEWS - On Wednesday 23 March, the speaker of the Dr Beyers Naude Local Municipality (DBNLM), Cheslin Felix, announced that the private auction of municipal assets that has been scheduled for Thursday 24 March, has been postponed until further notice.
This follows after Graaff-Reinet residents, who opposed the alienation of municipal assets without proper public participation, delivered a petition with 425 signatures to the mayor of the DBNLM, Ewald Loock, on Tuesday 22 March.
By closing of office, the residents did not receive any response.
The next morning at about 07:00 the convener of the newly established Save DBNLM movement, Sias Smith, was informed by the speaker that a meeting with the auctioneers and Steering Committee to discuss the postponement of the private auction has been arranged.
After the meeting, the speaker explained to residents that petitions are administered by the speaker's office and not the mayor's office and that the delay in response can be attributed to the fact that he had been out of office on 22 March.
He informed residents that he has "deliberated with council partners and received a request from ANC caucus to consult with the administration to postpone the land disposal auction until the matter can further be deliberated on at a Special Council Meeting scheduled for 29 March."
Members of the Save DBNLM movement again made it clear that they will not accept any decision without proper public participation and that the council can, therefore, not deliberate and decide on the matter without consulting the community.
On Monday 28 March, they also submitted a letter to the speaker emphasising that public participation is mandatory and not discretionary and that the municipality's failure to enable the community to meaning-fully participate in the discussions on the disposal of community assets is in contravention of the Municipal Systems Act 32 of 2000.
Based on this, they demanded the immediate cancellation of all plans to dispose of community assets.
They also demanded that meetings with all local communities to obtain their views regarding the proposed disposal must be organised and that communication with local communities should not be limited to notices on the municipality's website.
The municipality must use various mechanisms, including but not limited to public announcements and notices and notices must be distributed through churches, local schools and community structures.
In addition, they also demanded the cancellation of the council meeting that has been scheduled for Tuesday 29 March, to discuss the disposal of community assets.
In response to the letter of demand, the speaker invited a delegation of the Save DBNLM movement to discuss the municipality's position. According to the municipality, the decision to dispose of municipal assets that no longer generate any income, but have become a financial burden was initiated by officials and the council based on the financial position of the municipality.
The chief financial officer (CFO), Jimmy Joubert, reported that the total debt of the municipality is currently estimated between R360-million and R400-million. This amount is owing to various creditors including Eskom, the Government Employee Pension Fund, SARS, the Auditor-General and SALGA.
The income generated from the sale of municipal assets will not be enough to cover the current debt but will cover the most urgent debt.
Joubert attributed the poor financial position of the municipality to historical debt that was inherited through the amalgamation with debt-ridden municipalities (Ikwezi and Baviaans) and the failure of the National Government to honour its promise to clear this debt.
The municipality disagreed with the Save DBNLM movement's claim that the current financial crisis was caused by incompetence and lack of visionary and ethical leadership and stated that everyone living in the DBNLM area, including the officials and the council, must be held accountable for the financial crisis.
Regarding the issue of proper public participation, the municipality was unable to provide any minutes or attendance register of any meeting conducted with the community to discuss the proposed disposal of municipal assets.
To date, the municipality also failed to respond to a considerable number of letters previously submitted by community members who are opposed to the proposed disposal.
The way forward regarding the proposed disposal of municipal assets is unclear, but members of the Save DBNLM movement reaffirmed their position as per the letter of demand and are awaiting a response from the municipality.
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