KNYSNA NEWS - A spat has developed between two Knysna organisations after a letter by Ward 10 committee members was sent to Knysna Municipality requesting an investigation into members of the municipality's Planning Tribunal (KMPT) and planning officials. The current committee for Ward 10 was elected earlier this month and comprises Andrew Finn, Richard Sohn, Schalk van der Merwe, Maurice Kruger, Marike Vreken, Peter Lay, Felix Myburgh, and Catherine and Peter Hollely.

The document, also sent to the Knysna Plett-Herald (KPH), accused the tribunal of being dysfunctional and incompetent and declared that Ward 10 committee members unanimously agreed that a "local authority must strive, within its financial and administrative capabilities, to promote social and economic development". 

It stated that they believe "this has not been the situation in Knysna over the past few years", which has left all of them "with a feeling of frustration".

"Either the council is wasting money on the appointment of incompetent, but qualified registered professional town planners or the KMPT has its own anti-development agenda or has another hidden agenda," the document stated.

'An attempt to further own interests'
In turn, Ward 10 councillor Peter Myers responded to KPH saying that the accusations are riddled with "nefarious innuendo" and are primarily an attempt by interested parties in the committee to further their own interests or those of their clients. Both parties accuse each other of conflicts of interest.

In the document, the committee members compared successful applications for developments to those of neighbouring towns such as Mossel Bay and George and bemoan Knysna's low approval rate.

"How can it be that the KMPT disagrees with 67% of the recommendations made to it?" the committee asked – suggesting the problem lies partly with the municipality's planning and development director Marlene Boyce, who is also the tribunal's chair.

"… Boyce has insight into the assessment of the applications but then also adjudicates these applications as chairperson of the KMPT!'' The document described this as a "clear conflict of interest'', questioned whether Boyce is sufficiently experienced for the position of planning director, and whether she applied for the position within the prescribed period.

Approval statistics 'laughable'
Myers described the development approval comparisons and statistics as "laughable". "It is ridiculous to judge the outcome of any adjudication body on its approving or rejecting matters before it," he said, adding that approvals depend on the quality of the applications only. "'If the KMPT applies applicable law and regulations and the applications before it all comply, it will have a 100% success rate and if none do, it will have a 0% success rate," he stated.

In terms of Boyce's alleged conflict of interest, Meyers told KPH that the municipal planning bylaws "insist on a municipal planning representative being on the board".

In her own response to KPH on accusations concerning her experience, Boyce compared people asking her to prove her competence to being "asked to produce her dompas" during the apartheid days. She said the scrutiny of her credentials is unparalleled among her male peers and that she deemed the allegations regarding the legitimacy of her appointment in a such a regulated environment as "highly discriminatory".

Schalk van der Merwe

Tribunal member Susan Campbell answered the allegations by noting in her response to KPH that Boyce has more than the required experience and is actually overqualified: "Ms Boyce had been employed in middle-management in the planning department for more than the required five years and as compliance officer.'' She added that Boyce has a BA LLB and master's degree in development studies whereas only a BA degree would have sufficed.

'Conflict of interests'
In the committee's document, members directly accused Campbell of having a conflict of interests, due to her involvement in "various litigation matters against approved development decisions". It cited the building of the mosque in town and the Oakhill sports grounds in Welbedacht among others as examples.

Campbell responded saying both she and Boyce would recuse themselves from the tribunal when there is a conflict of interest. She said the Ward 10 document was "riddled with unsubstantiated allegations and speculation and some unscientific statistics".

Boyce also questioned the motives of some committee members: "Five municipal departments report to my directorate. However, the legitimacy of my appointment in respect only of development decision making has been constantly challenged through spurious defamatory allegations."

Marlene Boyce.

Campbell said the committee is not representative and has not fulfilled its mandate, adding, "They should do the honourable thing and resign to afford Ward 10 residents the opportunity to select representatives who will actually look after their diverse interests and not just the interests of one sector,'' she said in reference to development planning.

'Letter fails to disclose the obvious'
Myers concurred: "The letter fails to disclose the obvious and self-serving interest of some of those on the committee who have made it their business to try and discredit the KMPT and take other action against the Knysna Municipality either to further their own interests or interests of their clients.''

He stated that Schalk van der Merwe "is a well-known property developer in Knysna and has (and presumably will have) matters before the KMPT" and Marike Vreken "is a town planner in private practice and has represented clients in numerous applications before the KMPT''. 

Peter Myers

Myers also mentioned that Andrew Finn has done contract work for the municipality, adding, "Their resistance to the KMPT, which includes some of the most experienced planners in the country, may be because they believe that a more pliant KMPT may serve their individual and commercial interests far better."

Campbell called for a meeting so that the authors of the document could present evidence of defamatory allegations, and she and others could respond to them, and threatened legal action should the committee not agree to this. 

"Their conduct in hijacking the committee for their personal agendas is utterly selfish and disgraceful," she said.

The official response from the mayor's office was that it did not wish to answer to the Ward 10 letter at this time and it did not offer any indication as to whether the municipality would investigate the Planning Tribunal or any of its members.

Letter from WARD 10 Ward Committee Members

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