KNYSNA NEWS - The provincial leadership of the ANC has stepped in to save the ruling alliance in Knysna Municipality and is in engagements with the PA leadership to iron out any differences that might still exist.

This is according to a statement released to KPH by ANC provincial spokesperson Khalid Sayed, who said there is no new deal with another political party to maintain a majority, so the status quo remains.

 "We still believe we can engage the PA." He claimed the ANC WC provincial leadership is in continuous discussions with the Patriotic Alliance (PA) over the withdrawal of two of the PA councillors from the ruling alliance in Knysna.

The top five ANC provincial leaders met on Thursday 7 September with its Knysna councillors and decided to continue discussions with the PA to iron out "some of the misunderstandings" which led to PA president Gayton McKenzie announcing the withdrawal of his councillors, Waleed Grootboom and Beauty Charlie, from the alliance as well as the mayoral committee.

In a live social media video last week, McKenzie said the resignations of the PA councillors was due to the appointment of four new permanent directors in the council on 1 September. 

In his video McKenzie said, "The ANC did not respect the coalition partners and made appointments against our express wishes." 

He added that the PA remained king-makers in the council and that it would use that position to ensure that the municipal executive exercise their duties "in the best interests of the residents of Knysna".

According to Sayed, the discussions in the ANC last week after the resignations were aimed at continuing with the coalition agreement and to work together.

PA won't join coalition

However, PA national spokesperson Stevern Motale said the PA "has left the coalition with the ANC" but did not confirm that negotiations with the ANC were on the table.

"The fact is that the PA left the coalition because the ANC coalition did not ensure that there were any local coloured or white directors appointed in the municipality. The PA cannot be part of that.

"The PA councillors were instructed to resign as MMCs and they duly did. They are also instructed to abstain from voting in council."

Motale stated that the PA "will stay out of the coalition until the management of Knysna Municipality represents the South Africa we envision. Those are the cold hard facts".

Legal costs

Sayed said the ANC had shifted the legal onus onto the appointed directors, should they become involved in legal challenges to prove the the accuracy of their qualifications.

He said the ANC decided that the directors would have to foot their legal bills individually if their qualifications are not accepted by the Western Cape Minister of Local Government, Anton Bredell.

"The individuals themselves would need to foot the bill when it comes to the issue of defending their qualifications.

"All those particular posts, senior management positions, if it is found that the individuals are indeed not qualified then they need to be readvertised." He said that, if Bredell does not accept the appointments based on their qualifications, "the municipality must not be footing the bill for the legal costs of fighting for those people to be actually be appointed".

The four appointments made on 1 Septem-ber are Olga Ndlovu as CFO; Adv Luvuyo Loliwe as Director of Corporate Services; Lindile Petuna as Director of Integrated Human Settlements; and Andiswa Dunywa as Director of Planning, Economic Development and Tourism.

DA weighs in

On Monday 11 September, DA Knysna constituency head Dr Dion George said in a statement that the DA was not in the least surprised at McKenzie's latest "theatrics". 

"He said and did exactly the same when he withdrew from the coalition with the DA. At that time, he had demanded the appointment of PA cadres in the Knysna administration, which the DA refused to permit," said George.

"Given that the PA cannot be trusted to offer stable government, and their signature on a coalition agreement is worthless, the DA will not attempt another coalition or other agreement with them. We will also not attempt a motion of no confidence in the mayor, deputy mayor and speaker in an attempt to establish a minority government, even if the PA actually does not vote as it has threatened to do," said George.

Motale said the PA had read Dion George's "tirade" against the PA. "Of course the DA never takes ownership of their shortcomings.

"In their usual toxic manner they blame everything on the PA, but we would like the residents of Knysna to see through the theatrics and political grandstanding and recognise the facts," he said.

"The fact is that the DA has done nothing but complain about the ANC coalition on social media. The fact is that Dion George, for all his antics, has decided to leave the minority ANC coalition in power.

"We urge the residents to take those facts on board. The DA has therefore given its blessing to the ANC-led coalition and is quite comfortable to allow the ANC to continue in power."

Knysna Municipality

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