THABAZIMBI – In an open letter to the municipality, Jan Viljoen of the Transvaal District Agricultural Union accused the municipality of following a selective public consultation strategy whereby certain community members were purposefully excluded from participating in the IDP (Integrated Development Plan) for the period 2008/2009.
In a response from the municipality white members of the Thabazimbi community are accused of apathy and being unparticipative and that white councillors do not consult with their constituents.
The IDP, virtually the municipality’s capital budget, for 2008/9 is considered the indicator document in fixing the new property tax tariffs. According to Viljoen the TDAU has a vested interest in the document, since farmers will be paying property taxes as from 1 July 2008. Therefore the farmers, of all people, should not be excluded from participating in the process.
Apparently, according to the Municipal Systems Act the municipality is compelled to consult with the public and ensure transparency. The process does not permit any part of the community to be excluded. Viloen says the municipality failed in meeting this requirement.
The meetings were advertised in November 2007 inviting the public to meetings at Rooiberg, Rooibokkraal, Regorogile and Northam. The venues, Viljoen says, “are not inclusive with respect to the distribution of interested and affected parties”. He added that no public meetings were held in Dwaalboom, in Rooiberg the meetings were held in seTswana, and in Rooibokkraal farm workers were carted to a meeting, which the farmers never received a notice of.
In a response from the municipality it denies following a selective consultative process. Anybody could attend the public meetings that were advertised in the Kwêvoël, and these meetings will continue to be advertised locally, the press release states. It says that all meetings are open to the public, including council meetings. Presentations can be made to all councillors, the municipal manager and heads of departments.
It is explained why extra effort was made to consult with certain groups of people. While most stakeholders are already represented at the IDP, ordinary community members are not represented, “which necessitated other forms of consultation”.
The response continues by accusing white people of not attending public meetings, suggesting that they would not even attend if the president of the country was present. “They see the government as a thing of the black people; therefore they have no interest in attending government activities”, the statement reads. The white councillors are also accused of not consulting with the people they represent.
The municipality invites anybody who can come up with a plan to get the white community to participate, to do so. The municipality wants white community members to participate in the developmental agenda of the country, as a political party, but also as individuals.
Thabazimbi News l Nuus
