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Mobile phone: +27(0)833339902
Fax: +27(0)866070820
E-mail:
or
Enquiries: Mr. L.J. Nel
To:
1. The Portfolio Committee on Justice & Constitutional Development
2. The Portfolio Committee on Provincial & Local Government
3. The Select Committee on Security & Constitutional Affairs
4. The Select Committee on Local Government & Administration
CC:
1. The Executive Mayor, Merafong City Local Municipality
2. The Municipal Manager, Merafong City Local Municipality
Bcc:
1. Mr. Herman Groenewald, Democratic Alliance
2. Carletonville Herald
Attachments:
1. Letter, dated 8 December 2008
2. Letter, dated 5 January 2009 (Department of Justice)
3. Letter, dated 5 January 2009 (Department of Provincial & Local Government)
4. Letter, dated 5 January 2009 (Minister of Provincial & Local Government)
5. Response, dated 11 December 2008 (Minister of Provincial & Local Government)
6. Notice, dated 1 February 2009 (Sunday Times, Sport Section (p10))
Re: CONSTITUTION SIXTEENTH AMENDMENT BILL (B1-2009) & CROSS-BOUNDARY MUNICIPALITIES LAWS REPEAL AND RELATED AMENDMENT BILL (B3-2009)
1. This letter/presentation is in response to the publicized notice as attached as Attachment 6.
2. Attached to this document are several pieces of correspondence with certain individuals & government departments regarding the transfer of the Merafong City Local Municipality (MCLM) from North West Province to Gauteng Province. Unfortunately the lack of feedback & response the individuals & government departments is clearly evident!
3. When reading through the attached documents & correspondence you will clearly & definitely note that the constitutional rights of a large portion of the residents of MCLM have been infringed on by the process or the lack of the process. The total disregard of transparent & all-involving public participation is clearly evident.
4. The will of a certain grouping, namely the residents of Khutsong, are undemocratically forced onto other residents of the MCLM, without even listening or considering their questions, suggestions & concerns.
5. If the timings of the so-called notices & publications of draft bills are evaluated, it will clearly be seen that it was done with clear intent to prevent certain groupings from participating in the legally prescribed processes. Even the publication & timing of Attachment 6 raises certain question.
6. During all the processes there was a definite purpose by Government & the Ruling Party on national, provincial & local government level to selectively withhold information on the processes & prevent opposition being expressed on the issue at hand regarding the transfer of MCLM.
7. The total lack of effective opportunities for public participation by all residents of MCLM & the total lack of a detailed information campaign to highlight the process, progress, positive & negative aspects, forms a sure basis for a successful legal action that can overturn the whole process & all associated legislation.
8. I therefore urge you to refer the process back to the involved government departments to ensure their compliance is achieved regarding the principle of transparent & open public participation, as guaranteed in the Constitution of the Republic of South Africa.
9. It will also be appreciated if the officials in the various involved government departments can start to substantiate their words with facts & figures, in a timely manner. It is very disappointing if a minister in charge of a department cannot answer any correspondence in detail, or for that matter even does not attempt to answer any correspondence. It confirms the impression that facts are lacking & information are intentionally withheld.
10. We eagerly await your quick & positive feedback & response.
Regards
(L.J. NEL)
2009/02/06
ATTACHMENT 1
Mobile phone: +27(0)833339902
Fax: +27(0)866070820
E-mail:
or
Enquiries: Mr. L.J. Nel
Mr/Mrs/Mis,
Re: THE PROPOSED TRANSFER OF THE MERAFONG CITY LOCAL MUNICIPALITY (MCLM) FROM THE KENNETH KAUNDA DISTRICT MUNICIPALITY (KKDM) TO THE WEST RAND DISTRICT MUNICIPALITY (WRDM)
1. This letter has reference to the abovementioned.
2. The aim & purpose of this letter is to raise certain objections & concerns regarding the proposed transfer of the MCLM.
3. As the proposed transfer is not merely a shift between District Municipalities, but also a shift between provinces, the issues at stake are more complex.
4. As a resident of Fochville, whose family has been living here for 38 years, I am obliged to oppose the transfer of the MCLM on the basis that my constitutional rights are infringed. Several practical, legal & procedural aspects have been ignored, as to facilitate an unrealistic & unpractical political decision.
5. The following aspects have to be noted as definite concerns & objections:
a. Fochville, Kokosi, Greenspark & Wedela have never been a part of Gauteng. These areas have historically always been part the North West Province & the old Western Transvaal.
b. The residents of Fochville, Kokosi, Geenspark & Wedela have not at all been informed in detail of their proposed transfer to the WRDM & Gauteng Province. Nobody in national, provincial or local government has seen the need to publicly inform us of the proposed transfer, the advantages & disadvantages, as well as the related consequences & costs.
c. A political decision made by the African National Congress (ANC), endorsed by the Mr. Gwede Mantashe (Secretary General of the ANC) & the Premier of Gauteng Province in public, regarding the position of Khutsong & its residents are now forcibly applied to all residents of MCLM.
d. The lack of recognition of the interests of the residents of Fochville, Kokosi, Greenspark & Wedela are a fundamental infringement of their constitutional rights & shows a definite disregard for our countries democratic basis.
6. Due to the lack of open & honest communication, as well as public participation, the views & concerns of the following people are totally ignored:
a. All residents of Fochville, Kokosi, Greenspark & Wedela; this equals to about 40% of the residents of the MCLM.
b. All businesses in Fochville, Kokosi, Greenspark & Wedela; this equals to about 35% of all business activities within the MCLM.
7. Although most residents & businesses supported the basis & fundamentals of the struggle of the residents of Khutsong, they have never expressed their desire or wish to become part of Gauteng Province. The Khutsong-struggle was only aimed to transfer Khutsong, Carletonville & Welverdiend back to Gauteng Province.
8. It seems to me that the ANC & the respective government departments are again following the same illegal & non-democratic avenues to enforce a political decision, which lead the way for & initiated the struggle of the residents of Khutsong. The only difference this time around is that it is now being applied to Fochville, Kokosi, Greenspark & Wedela.
9. Certain public political statements made by the ANC & national government not to go against the wishes of the people of an area or region, are again in danger of being ignored or totally neglected. Smart words, with no meaning!
10. I therefore urge you to reconsider the following:
a. The decision to transfer the whole MCLM from the KKDM to the WRDM.
b. The application of an open & honest public participation process.
c. The application of an open & honest public information process.
11. The time frames as publicized by government & the ANC for the completion of the transfer are also based on impractical & unrealistic promises, that will eventually again leave the people of the MCLM, & especially Khutsong, disillusioned.
12. We eagerly await your quick & positive feedback & response.
Regards
(L.J. NEL)
2008/12/08
ATTACHMENT 2
Mobile phone: +27(0)833339902
Fax: +27(0)866070820
E-mail:
or
Enquiries: Mr. L.J. Nel
To: Mr. Johan Labuschagne
Principal State Law Adviser
Legislative Development
Department of Justice and Constitutional Development
Republic of South Africa
Mr. Labuschagne,
Re: THE PROPOSED TRANSFER OF THE MERAFONG CITY LOCAL MUNICIPALITY (MCLM) FROM THE KENNETH KAUNDA DISTRICT MUNICIPALITY (KKDM) TO THE WEST RAND DISTRICT MUNICIPALITY (WRDM)
1. This letter has reference to the abovementioned.
2. The aim & purpose of this letter is to raise certain objections & concerns regarding the proposed transfer of the MCLM.
3. As the proposed transfer is not merely a shift between District Municipalities, but also a shift between provinces, the issues at stake are more complex.
4. As a resident of Fochville, whose family has been living here for 38 years, I am obliged to oppose the transfer of the MCLM on the basis that my constitutional rights are infringed. Several practical, legal & procedural aspects have been ignored, as to facilitate an unrealistic & unpractical political decision.
5. The following aspects have to be noted as definite concerns & objections:
- Fochville, Kokosi, Greenspark & Wedela have never been a part of Gauteng. These areas have historically always been part the North West Province & the old Western Transvaal.
- The residents of Fochville, Kokosi, Geenspark & Wedela have not at all been informed in detail of their proposed transfer to the WRDM & Gauteng Province. Nobody in national, provincial or local government has seen the need to publicly inform us of the proposed transfer, the advantages & disadvantages, as well as the related consequences & costs.
- A political decision made by the African National Congress (ANC), endorsed by the Mr. Gwede Mantashe (Secretary General of the ANC) & the Premier of Gauteng Province in public, regarding the position of Khutsong & its residents are now forcibly applied to all residents of MCLM.
- The lack of recognition of the interests of the residents of Fochville, Kokosi, Greenspark & Wedela are a fundamental infringement of their constitutional rights & shows a definite disregard for our countries democratic basis.
6. Due to the lack of open & honest communication, as well as public participation, the views & concerns of the following people are totally ignored:
- All residents of Fochville, Kokosi, Greenspark & Wedela; this equals to about 40% of the residents of the MCLM.
- All businesses in Fochville, Kokosi, Greenspark & Wedela; this equals to about 35% of all business activities within the MCLM.
7. Although most residents & businesses supported the basis & fundamentals of the struggle of the residents of Khutsong, they have never expressed their desire or wish to become part of Gauteng Province. The Khutsong-struggle was only aimed to transfer Khutsong, Carletonville & Welverdiend back to Gauteng Province.
8. It seems to me that the ANC & the respective government departments are again following the same illegal & non-democratic avenues to enforce a political decision, which lead the way for & initiated the struggle of the residents of Khutsong. The only difference this time around is that it is now being applied to Fochville, Kokosi, Greenspark & Wedela.
9. Certain public political statements made by the ANC & national government not to go against the wishes of the people of an area or region, are again in danger of being ignored or totally neglected. Smart words, with no meaning!
10. I therefore urge you to reconsider the following:
- The decision to transfer the whole MCLM from the KKDM to the WRDM.
- The application of an open & honest public participation process.
- The application of an open & honest public information process.
11. The time frames as publicized by government & the ANC for the completion of the transfer are also based on impractical & unrealistic promises, that will eventually again leave the people of the MCLM, & especially Khutsong, disillusioned.
12. We eagerly await your quick & positive feedback & response.
Regards
(L.J. NEL)
2009/01/05
ATTACHMENT 3
Mobile phone: +27(0)833339902
Fax: +27(0)866070820
E-mail:
or
Enquiries: Mr. L.J. Nel
To: The Director-General
Attention: Mr. T. Motlashuping
Department of Provincial & Local Government
Republic of South Africa
Cc: Mr. Makgatle Jackals
Deputy Manager: Institutional Development Systems
Department of Provincial & Local Government
Republic of South Africa
Sir,
Re: COMMENTS ON THE CROSS-BOUNDARY MUNICIPALITIES LAWS REPEAL AND RELATED MATTERS AMENDMENT BILL, 2008 (NOTICE 1538 OF 2008)
1. This letter has reference to the abovementioned.
2. The aim & purpose of this letter is to comment on the mentioned Bill as published in the Government Gazette.
3. Comments & remarks on the Bill:
- The technical standard of the Bill is far below any acceptable standard. The document as published is full of spelling & grammatical errors. It seems that nobody has taken time or made any effort to check & inspect the document before it was finalized & published.
- The following aspects have conveniently been disregarded during the process to create the Bill & are totally ignored by the involved government departments, as highlighted in the “Background”-paragraph of the Bill:
i. Fochville, Kokosi, Greenspark & Wedela have never been a part of Gauteng. These areas have historically always been part the North West Province & the old Western Transvaal.
ii. The residents of Fochville, Kokosi, Geenspark & Wedela have not at all been informed in detail of their proposed transfer to the WRDM & Gauteng Province. Nobody in national, provincial or local government has seen the need to publicly inform us of the proposed transfer, the advantages & disadvantages, as well as the related consequences & costs.
iii. A political decision made by the African National Congress (ANC), endorsed by the Mr. Gwede Mantashe (Secretary General of the ANC) & the Premier of Gauteng Province in public, regarding the position of Khutsong & its residents are now forcibly applied to all residents of MCLM.
iv. The lack of recognition of the interests of the residents of Fochville, Kokosi, Greenspark & Wedela are a fundamental infringement of their constitutional rights & shows a definite disregard for our countries democratic basis.
- Due to the lack of open & honest communication, as well as public participation, the views & concerns of the following people are totally ignored & was not considered or addressed in the Bill:
i. All residents of Fochville, Kokosi, Greenspark & Wedela; this equals to about 40% of the residents of the MCLM.
ii. All businesses in Fochville, Kokosi, Greenspark & Wedela; this equals to about 35% of all business activities within the MCLM.