Author: knysnamovement
UPSTART KIM IS SNAPPING AT THE DA’S HEELS
UPSTART KIM IS SNAPPING AT THE DA’S HEELS
As the hotly-contested race in Ward 5 heated up this weekend, the DA wheeled in the heavy artillery: Knysna native and Western Cape premier Alan Winde came down from Cape Town to hold three separate meetings with voters on Saturday: in Brenton, Belvidere and Rheenendal.
But hold on! Local by-elections rarely merit a visit from a provincial premier. Who has got the Big Blue Wave checking in their rear–view mirror?
At national, provincial and even local municipal level, the main threat to South Africa’s official opposition party is of course the ANC.
But not in Ward 5. If we look at the results of the 2016 local elections, the ANC only managed to garner about 17% of the ballots cast in Knysna’s 5th ward—to the DA’s 74%!
Three months ago, even fewer ward 5 voters (14%) opted for the ANC in the May 2019 national and provincial election, whilst the DA still polled 68% of the total.
Similarly, this past May the “Plaaslike Besorgte Inwoners”(“PBI”), only took about 10% of the votes in ward 5. As for the EFF: no one expects the party of Julius Malema to climb out of the single digits in ward 5.
That leaves only… KIM- the Knysna Independent Movement, and our candidate, Susan Campbell.
It seems that Susan “KIM” Campbell has been making serious inroads in the DA’s ward 5 stronghold over the past fortnight. Her turnout has been consistently better than or equal to premier Winde’s was on Saturday, and her performance in this past week’s debates has elicited approving statements on social media, (“The only grown-up in the room,” etc.) rather than criticism.
Premier Alan Winde also seemed to recognise the threat posed by KIM when he sought to convince voters in Belvidere on Saturday not to vote for “independents”. Two weeks earlier, the DA’s campaign manager Dion George also warned against voting for “independents”, saying this would split the vote and allow the ANC to win. But as we have already seen, given their track record in ward 5, the ANC is not a serious contender in this race.
Even so, KIM faces a monumental task. Our party, which was registered on 19th July, only started campaigning about 3 weeks ago, whilst the DA has consistently garnered between two-thirds and three-fourths of the votes in ward 5 in the four elections since 2011. However, given the DA candidate’s less than impressive performance in the debates and the low attendance at their “Let’s Talk” functions, a victory by KIM’s Susan Campbell is still a real possibility if enough disgruntled voters make it to the polls.
The result should be known by midnight
From the Knysna Ratepayers Association Facebook page
From the Knysna Ratepayers Association Facebook page.
WHY DOES PREMIER ALAN WINDE SAY MARK WILLEMSE SHOULD HAVE RESIGNED AS MAYOR WHEN MICHELLE WASSERMAN IS THE DA’S SO-CALLED “MAYOR-ELECT”?
In his public interactions in Belvidere and Brenton on Saturday, DA Premier Alan Winde said that the ongoing conflicts in Knysna’s governing party were basically due to Mark Willemse’s refusal to resign as mayor after both he and Michelle Wasserman went through the DA’s mayoral selection process, and Wasserman won. Winde said that he himself had abided by the outcome of a DA selection process for premier, and had even threatened to take legal action when others failed to abide by it, implying that if Willemse had only followed his example and abided by the outcome of the DA’s mayoral selection process, all of the DA’s woes in Knysna could have been avoided.
Either Winde is uninformed, or he is being disingenuous.
To understand what actually happened, one must know that the DA mayoral selection process does not select the town’s mayor, rather, it only selects the DA’s chosen candidate for mayor. The mayor is actually elected by the full Council from the candidates nominated by each party. The DA selection process only becomes relevant when the mayorship falls vacant. It is important to note that this so-called Mayoral Selection Process is an internal Party process that is not required by law. The mayor is elected by Council and that is the end of it.
After Willemse voted his conscience and Eleanor Bouw-Spies was removed as mayor on 6 June 2018, the position of mayor became vacant. When the vote came for the election of a new mayor, Bouw-Spies walked out of the meeting and the remaining DA Councillors followed, leaving it up to any other party to nominate a candidate of their choice. Willemse was the only Councillor nominated for the position of mayor (by Peter Myers, a DA member who acted on the instructions of MEC Anton Bredell, the Chairman of the DA Provincial Executive Council). Since none of the other parties nominated an alternative candidate, Willemse was the uncontested candidate for mayor and by default, in terms of our legislation, became mayor.
The DA then initiated disciplinary proceedings against him, claiming that he had failed to vote with his caucus, and the DA Provincial Executive Committee decided, among other things, that he must resign as mayor.
However, Willemse appealed that decision to the DA’s Federal Legal Commission (“FLC”). While his appeal was pending, the DA proposed that he undergo their mayoral candidate selection process, even though he was still the lawfully-elected mayor and would remain so unless and until he lost his appeal. Willemse made it very clear at the outset that his participation in the selection process was “without prejudice” and subject to the outcome of his appeal. In other words, he would only abide by the outcome of the DA’s mayoral candidate selection process if he lost his appeal, and the mayorship then fell vacant. If the FLC upheld his appeal, he would be vindicated, there would be no opening in the mayorship, and he would remain as mayor, regardless.
Thus, although Councillor Wasserman reportedly outscored Willemse in the DA’s mayoral candidate selection process, that process became irrelevant when Willemse was vindicated by winning his appeal to the FLC on 1 November 2018. Wasserman merely won the right to be the DA’s chosen candidate for mayor the next time an election for mayor had to be held. It has to be said that none of the assessments and tests alluded to by Winde were followed in the DA mayoral selection process, which involved nothing but a relatively short interview, before a panel headed by James Selfe, who was clearly biased against Willemse.
Since Willemse won his appeal, no election for mayor had to be held, and Willemse remains as the mayor lawfully chosen by Council. So Premier Winde’s explanation of what happened, and who is at fault, is simply… wrong. Willemse, who enjoys wide support from Knysna’s various communities, has every right to continue as mayor.
Oh, and incidentally, Michelle Wasserman is not the “mayor-elect”. A mayor-elect is someone who has been elected mayor, but has not yet been sworn in. Wasserman has not been elected mayor: she has not even been a candidate in an election for mayor. She is merely the DA’s preferred candidate should the opportunity for the election of a mayor present itself. Or, as Jimmy Cliff put it, Michelle has still got: many rivers to cross…
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kGeCeK85sUg&list=RDkGeCeK85sUg&start_radio=1&t=19
KIM – THEME SONG – Enjoy and vote clearly now!
Don’t forget to attend the Great Debate at the Brenton Community Hall tonight, 13th August at 18h00.
WARD 5 BY-ELECTION EDEN FM CANDIDATE DEBATES!
WARD 5 BY-ELECTION
EDEN FM CANDIDATE DEBATES!
Tuesday 13th August 2019
Brenton Community Hall
6pm – 8 pm
(CR Swart Road, Brenton-on-Sea)
Wednesday, 14th August 2019
Rheenendal Community Centre
6pm-8pm
The Rheenendal debate will be broadcast by Eden FM 99.7.
This should be an interesting debate, offering residents an opportunity to get to know the candidates and where they stand on the issues.
You can attend either debate in person, or tune in to Eden FM 99.7 on Wednesday, 6pm – 8pm
You can also Whatsapp your questions live to Eden FM on
060 505 2693
All 5 parties contesting the election have been invited to send their candidate to take part in the debate.
{This is a public service announcement}.
STEM KIM KNYSNA INDEPENDENT MOVEMENT 21 AUGUSTUS 2019 – WYK 5 TUSSENVERKIESING
STEM KIM
KNYSNA INDEPENDENT MOVEMENT
21 AUGUSTUS 2019 – WYK 5 TUSSENVERKIESING
KNYSNA VIR KNYSNA
ONS KANDIDAAT IS SUSAN CAMPBELL
Susan sal veg teen:
• Korrupsie en Nepotisme;
• Ongelykheid en onregverdigheid;
• Swak dienslewering
Susan sal werk vir:
• Bekostigbare openbare vervoer;
• Rheenendal mark, om werkskepping en ekonomiese geleenthede te bevorder;
• Werkskepping;
• Bandbestryding deur die verwydering van indringerplante;
• Beter opleiding en ontwikkelingsgeleenthede;
• Eiendomsreg en ekonomiese geleenthede vir inwoners van bosdorpe en landelike gebiede;
• Bewaring van ons omgewing en kultuurerfenis en volhoubare gebruik van natuurlike hulpbronne;
• Beter beplanning en meer doeltreffende boumetodes, sodat meer inwoners vinniger behuising kan bekom;
• Regstelling van foutiewe eiendomsbelasting op landbougrond.
https://knysnaindependentmovement.co.za/
https://www.facebook.com/KnysnaIndependentMovement
VOTE KIM
KNYSNA INDEPENDENT MOVEMENT
21 AUGUSTUS 2019 – WARD 5 BY-ELECTION
KNYSNA FOR KNYSNA
OUR CANDIDATE IS SUSAN CAMPBELL
Susan will fight against:
• Corruption and Nepotism;
• Inequality and Injustice;
• Poor Service Delivery;
• Waste and Inefficiency in Municipal Government.
Susan will work towards:
• Affordable Public Transport;
• Rheenendal Market for Small Business;
• Job Creation;
• Safety through Removal of Alien Vegetation;
• Enhanced Development by way of Education;
• Home Ownership and Economic Opportunities for Forestry and Rural Communities;
• Conservation of our Natural Resources and Built Environment and sustainable use of Natural Resources;
• Speeding up Housing Delivery through innovative Planning and Building Methods;
• Rectifying excessive Agricultural Property Rates.
Meet and Greet, Riverdeck Buffalo Bay Road
We are pleased to announce another opportunity to meet and greet Susan.
Monday the 12th of August 2019 at the Riverdeck Restaurant on the Buffalo Bay road at 5:30pm.
We look forward to seeing you, and answering all your questions.
STOP THE DA RUN GARDEN ROUTE MUNICIPALITY FROM ALIENATING PUBLIC CONSERVATION LAND
During July 2018 Eden District Municipality, who are now known as Garden Route District Municipality (“GRDM”), published a notice of intention to partner with developers in respect of Farm 215 Portions 1, 2 + 3 Walkers Point, Buffalo Bay, Knysna by means of a tender process.
Portion 1 of Farm 215 Walkers Point is undeveloped, except for the southern portion, which houses municipal water treatment facilities and reservoirs as well as a communications mast and associated service road and infrastructure.
The property has high conservation value and has previously been managed by Goukamma Nature Reserve.
Portions 2 and 3 contain a caravan park, a section of the Buffalo Bay main access road, the remains of a demolished backpackers, a small number of worker’s houses, and natural vegetation.
During August 2019, our candidate Susan Campbell submitted an objection to the proposal on behalf of the Knysna Ratepayers Association.
During a DA meeting held at Belvidere on Saturday the 3rd of August 2019, when questioned about the advertisement, DA Constituency Head of Knysna, Dion George, responded that it was an old advertisement and that it is no longer proceeding.
This is incorrect.
We do not know whether Mr George is deliberately trying to mislead the public or is totally ignorant of what is going on.
Memory Booysen, the DA Mayor of the GRDM and their Municipal Manager have recently been in talks with the Knysna Municipal Manager about their plans and the plans have not yet been abandoned.
We need to remain vigilant and Susan will vigorously oppose these plans.
The GRDM has shown that they mean business when they recently advertised their intention to lease Calitzdorp Spa to a foreign company for 50 years. This has caused outrage and is currently being investigated.
The advertisement and newspaper article about this lease can be accessed via the links below:
A local welcome to politics
A wonderful welcome to KIM from the locals. We know we can make the difference. Thank you.
