Oudtshoorn runs from crisis to crisis which politicians from all sides use willy-nilly as tools in their power games. Plettenberg Bay a.k.a. Bitou illegally closed it’s offices to prevent a takeover and is now in the midst of a housing scandal. In Knysna, the Auditor General has recommended investigations into several tender conflict of which one situation alone involves R9-million worth of contracting jobs.
Now it’s the turn of George, the capital of Eden District, where Thuli Madonsela has released a Public Protector’s report that finds Municipal Manager Trevor Botha guilty of maladministration after the irregular appointment of an official in the area. She considers that the relationship between the official and the mayor’s office warrants looking into too.
Despite the scandals, George (DA), Plettenberg Bay (DA) and Knysna (DA) all received unqualified audits which were re-labelled by their leaders as “clean audits”, misleading the public into what the audits entailed… or, more importantly, what the audits didn’t include.
To say that South Africa sets a low standard of accountability is an understatement.
As the 2016 municipal elections approach, more misdeeds are likely to surface. I will reveal several myself in the new year.
In the meanwhile, here is Thuli’s report on George Municipality: ‘Out of the Blue’.