The party (politics) is over, the hangover is next.

By Trevor Watkins, Chairman Jeffreys Bay Residents Association.

In the recent Municipal elections in Kouga the ANC squeaked in with a 1 seat majority over the DA. The  ANC leaders and councillors have ignored the fundamental concepts of democracy. They have effectively disenfranchised close to half the voters in Kouga by selecting a mayoral committee only from their own ranks. Using their paper thin majority, they did not offer a single seat on this all powerful body to the DA.  This is majority politics at its crudest, with no sign of the compromise and reconciliation for which South Africa was once famous.  When the tables turn, as they always do, how loud will be the squeals from the ANC opposition if they are excluded from all positions of influence by a DA majority? 

An ANC council must now address and resolve the many problems bequeathed to it by the previous ANC administration. At least there is some justice in this. Kouga residents voted for change in this election, not more of the same. This new council would be foolish to ignore this message.

Kouga ratepayers now have the pleasure of paying for 29 councillors where previously they had only to pay for 15. At a bare minimum of R15,000 per councillor per month, the bill for their collective wisdom comes to R435,000 per month, more than R20,000 per working day, or close to R1,000 per hour. In reality, most councillors will cost Kouga double this amount. Are we getting value for money?  Do these 29 people add more than R20,000 worth of value to Kouga every single working day, as they would be expected to do in any kind of commercial business?

The 14 DA councillors are effectively dead ducks on the council. They can change virtually nothing. From the ANC’s perspective, they are useful figureheads – providing the appearance of democracy, while being largely ignored.  They would have a far greater impact on the ANC and the future of the Kouga if they resigned en masse, thus triggering a constitutional crisis which might ultimately lead to a new election. But don’t hold your breath, those opposition benches are really quite well-paid and comfortable.

Eight of the 15 ANC councillors are just there to make up the numbers. They will never vote against the decisions handed down by the mayor and the mayoral committee. They will never speak against them in public. At council meetings you could put cardboard dummies in their place, with a string connected to their voting arms, and no one would notice. Finally, Kouga is run by 7 people – the mayor and the mayoral committee. So much for representative democracy.

What can we, the residents and voters of Kouga do to ensure we get our money’s worth from our honourable councillors?  We can start by insisting that the councillors do the job for which they are paid.  We can ask them difficult questions. We can monitor their performance, in their wards and on the council. We can call them with our problems. We can demand to see them in public more often, at meetings, in the press, on the streets of their ward. In fact, as residents, we are entitled to make their lives such a misery that they wonder why they ever became councillors.  For your convenience, a list of the name and contact details of all the Kouga councillors appears on the J Bay Residents association website at www.jbayra.com.

I have prepared a list of questions which every councillor should be prepared to answer. All answers received will be published on the Jbayra blog, or in the local press if they are interested.

Question	Councillor’s Answer
Name
Ward number
Political Party
What is the balance of your rates and utilities account as at 1st June 2011?
Do you own a copy of the Municipal Systems Act?  Have you read it? Can you answer questions on it?
Do you own a copy of the Kouga 2011/12 Integrated Development Plan (IDP) at this moment? Have you made any written, public comments on the IDP?
Do you own a copy of the Kouga 2011/12 budget at this moment? Have you made any written, public comments on the budget?
Do you own a copy of the South African Constitution? Have you read it? Can you answer questions on it?
Have you ever attended a finance oversight committee meeting? Have you ever attended a Performance Review meeting? Have you ever attended a ward committee meeting?
When last did you organise a public meeting in your ward, outside of election time?
When last did you have anything published in a public forum, such as a newspaper? On what topic?
What are the top 5 issues for residents in your ward? How do you know?