KNYSNA NEWS - A decision regarding designated public areas and the hours during which alcohol may be consumed there during the festive season, will now only be considered after a thorough public participation process.
At the October 29 ordinary council meeting, after an almost two-hour long debate on the item before council, council had no other choice than to consider a public outcry, citing potential alcohol abuse and consequent negative incidents in response to the Knysna-Plett Herald's report on the possibility that alcohol may be allowed at certain public places.
Public meetings will be held in all ten municipal wards, followed by a joint meeting of all the wards, where the public's opinion will influence the amended recommendation. The public meetings will also be advertised in local newspapers and a recommendation will then come before council on December 10 at the last meeting of the year.
The public participation process will be conducted without council proposing its choice of public areas where drinking may be permitted or its preferred hours when it may be allowed.
The recommendation that a) the report on the designated public areas and hours on notice boards must be noted in terms of the Public Amenities By-law; b) that the areas where the consumption of alcohol may be permitted, be determined: Green Hole, Bollard’s Bay, Kathy Park, Coney Glen, Buffalo Bay, Old Jetty in Sedgefield and Brenton-on-Sea; c) that the hours during which alcohol consumption may be permitted at these areas be determined: All hours from December 23 to January 2 and between 06:00 and 22:00 from January 3 to December 22, is now something of the past.
The public will now have the opportunity to propose their choice of designated public areas where and the hours when drinking may be allowed, if all.
The decision did not come easy, as both the Democratic Alliance (DA) and African National Congress (ANC) requested ten-minute caucuses during the debate. During the ANC caucus, the DA councillors were visibly forming groups and ‘whispering’ about the issue.
At lunchtime, speaker Eleanore Bouw-Spies halted the meeting, with the request that all caucuses get together and return with a resolution when the meeting resumed.
In the run-up to this decision, harsh words and difficult questions were posed by the opposition councillors in the chamber. Clive Witbooi (ANC) asked: "Why do the DA want to change this recommendation? Why did the mayor [Georlene Wolmarans] bring this recommendation before us?"
Titi Gombo (ANC) stood up and said: "December is here. This looks like a rush-rush issue." The ANC chief whip, Stephen de Vries described it as "an issue of excessive use of alcohol". He spoke on behalf of the ANC when he said, "We hope this is not an issue based on the upcoming election next year."
Click here for previous articles:
- Public voice to determine public drinking
- Council debates public drinking
- Little public interest in important meeting
- Knysna revolts against drinking proposals
- 24 hour public drinking over Festive season?
ANC councillors Clive Witbooi (left) and Mthobeli Dyanty in conversation after an ANC caucus. Photos: Christo Vermaak.
DA councillors (from left) Raymond Barrel, Peter Myers, Mark Willemse, Irene Grootboom and Beauty Tyokolo in conversation, awaiting the ANC caucus to return to council.
ARTICLE AND PHOTOS: CHRISTO VERMAAK, KNYSNA-PLETT HERALD - NEWS EDITOR
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