GOOD statement by Brett Herron,
GOOD Secretary-General & Member of the Western Cape Provincial Parliament
5 November 2024
Yesterday, GOOD Secretary-General Brett Herron, on behalf of the GOOD Party in Theewaterskloof, formally requested that MEC Anton Bredell designate an official to convene and preside over a Council meeting to elect a Speaker and Deputy Mayor.
This request is made under Section 29 of the Structures Act, which allows the MEC to intervene when a Municipal Manager (MM) is either absent or refuses to call a meeting requested by the majority of councillors.
In this case, there is no doubt that the Acting MM is acting in bad faith and obstructing the democratic process.
On 31 October, he unilaterally postponed proceedings scheduled to fill these critical Council positions. Following this, the majority of Councillors submitted a request for an urgent meeting to be held at 10h00 on Tuesday, 5 November. However, the Acting MM failed to convene this meeting, citing reasons including a broken phone (damaged by his dogs) and upcoming medical tests.
In response, the majority of Councillors have once again submitted a request for the meeting, now to be set for Wednesday, 6 November 2024.
There is growing concern that the Acting MM is colluding with the FF+/PA/ANC councillors in an attempt to undermine legitimate and lawful democratic processes, and preventing the majority of councillors from forming a stable coalition in the municipality.
The MEC must promptly designate an impartial person to call and chair this meeting to ensure a fair and lawful election process for the Speaker and Deputy Mayor, allowing Theewaterskloof’s council to proceed with critical governance functions.
Media enquiries:
Brett Herron, GOOD: Secretary-General
Cell: 0825183264
Email: bretth@forgood.org.za
Samantha Jackson, GOOD: Media Manager
Cell: 083 5509875
Email: samantha@forgood.org.za