Knysna's future now in MEC Bredell's hands

IOL News

01-07-2025

Knysna mayor Thando Matika.
Image: Facebook
KNYSNA mayor Thando Matika has defended the municipality against the provincial government's plan to dissolve the municipal council, saying Knysna remained on the correct path to recovery.
Local government MEC Anton Bredell recently notified the municipality of his intention to appoint an administrator until a newly-elected leadership takes over the municipality.
Matika on Monday said they have implemented structural reforms and enhanced service delivery since the Council adopted the Consolidated Executive Obligations Monitoring and Enforcement Framework (CEOMEF) in June 2024,
'The journey is far from over but Knysna is on the correct path. A series of administrative and governance improvements were undertaken in August 2024, as outlined in the initial implementation report.
'By February 2025, the municipality had finalised the appointment of critical senior managers, achieved 97% completion of the Audit Action Plan, broadened the rollout of smart metering for both water and electricity. Tabled a budget-funding plan addressing sustainability beyond the 2024/2025 financial year, improved revenue management and expenditure control practices.'
'A multi-stakeholder Steering Committee, comprising representatives from the municipality, Provincial Government, and National Government, was established since the adoption of the Diagnostic and Support Plan on 1 March 2024 to oversee implementation and ensure accountability. Regular Steering Committee meetings, held both virtually and in person, provided a structured platform to monitor progress, escalate issues, and coordinate support across all three spheres of government.
'The latest Section 154 progress report was tabled before Council on 12 February 2025, supported by a comprehensive monitoring and reporting framework.'
In his statement last week, Bredell said the municipality continued to experience 'serious challenges in governance and service delivery'.
He cited several years of diagnostic assessments of the municipality's governance, financial, and service delivery matters.
'The assessment revealed deep-rooted governance failures, including a regressing audit opinion, an organisational culture of fear and uncertainty, political interference in administration, critical vacancies at senior levels, and a marked decline in service delivery."
After Knysna municipality failed to adopt another report in December 2023, Bredell issued a notice of intention to intervene in terms of section 139 of the Constitution in the Knysna Municipality. However, at the time he said after considering the representations of the municipality, they developed the CEOMEF cited by Matika for the municipality to implement.
According to Matika, by the close of 2024, a number of critical environmental and infrastructure achievements marked a turning point, notably the newly upgraded waste transfer station.
To address Knysna's water and sanitation challenges, Matika said pumping stations and reticulation networks were upgraded, as well as 'increased functionality at the wastewater treatment works", among others.
"The municipality responded to a notice from the Department of Forestry, Fisheries and the Environment (DFFE) regarding wastewater non-compliance in May 2025. Mechanical defects at the wastewater treatment works were promptly addressed. A multi-stakeholder workshop held in April included DFFE, BOCMA, DWS, the Municipal Infrastructure Support Agency (MISA) and provincial departments to address discharge regulations. The municipality committed to weekly effluent quality reporting and applied for a coastal discharge permit," the mayor added.