22/11/2025
Thursday 20 November the ward committee held a rare public meeting. The people of Sandbaai packed the hall and numerous municipal officials were there. Many issues were raised and it became clear that Sandbaai is fed up with the way we have been treated.
The issue of the three seats on our ward committee that are disqualified, including 2 seats held by the ward councillor's husband, was addressed. After more than 3 months of municipal inaction, provincial government is investigating, so the mayor said we must wait for the results of that investigation. The ward councillor's husband raised his hand and objected to the investigation into his seats on the ward committee.
The people of Sandbaai resoundingly spoke out against the IDP that was passed by votes from the 3 seats under investigation and it was revealed that the official sent to present the IDP as if it is already decided without public participation was himself under investigation. The mayor took over for that official and stated that he would look at the IDP again.
The majority of the meeting was spent by the mayor answering questions and showed that he is willing to address the public. It was a stark contrast to ward committee meetings in Sandbaai chaired by the ward councillor. The mayor said that if we have a problem with the ward councillor, we should report it to the ward councillor.
After numerous complaints about the IDP, the mayor asked the crowd if anyone did not support changing the IDP to place our priorities of sewer and stormwater as #1 and #2 in place of the controversial Kus Rd scandal and useless CCTV placeholder. Only the SRA director who wrote the proposal for the Kus Rd project raised his hand. Out of a crowd of over 200 people. The mayor committed to changing the IDP, but could not give specifics as he said he had to consult on the legalities.
Town Planner Riaan Kuchar reported that the environmental rezoning is still in progress. The Co-Management Agreement that could help us protect Sandbaai has been sitting on a desk since July and we were told it is now too late to for the council to address until next year. Mr. Kuchar agreed to look into expediting the process around the department that has stalled the process, so that we can at least hope for some progress in 2026.
The Schulphoek development plan overview was given by Guillaume Nel, with an explanation that this phase is only the registering of affected parties. We urge all Sandbaaiers to register before January.
The Kus Rd project was explained by Theo Steenberg, with the disclaimer that he is only the engineer asked to work on the plan, and not responsible for the problems with how it was proposed and approved without public participation. The public was clearly upset about the addition of parking bays where they are not needed, changing the road to a one-way, damaging the environment, and the wasteful expenditure on a beautification project while sewage is on the roads.
The issue of the disrespect of the ward councillor towards the public was raised along with general dissatisfaction with her performance. Health risks from sewage problems were a concern. The poor planning for traffic calming on Myrtle and Piet Retief was a concern. The biggest issue seemed to be the lack of public participation and needing to reform the ward committee and hold the ward councillor accountable. No clear progress was made on this and we must hope that provincial takes steps to remove the violators from the ward committee.
The meeting was a huge step forward for Sandbaai. People showed that they are willing to speak up in defence of our suburb and no longer be silenced. People saw that they are not alone in their frustration with the status quo. We love our suburb and want to protect and improve it. It was made abundantly clear that the people do not support the IDP or the Kus Rd project and want sewer and stormwater issues fixed before anything else is considered. There was a commitment by the mayor to listen to the people of Sandbaai going forward.
On her social media account following the meeting, the ward councillor rudely insulted the people of Sandbaai and made clear that she does not respect anyone living in Eastern Sandbaai. The people of Sandbaai deserve to have a ward councillor who represents us all and respects us.
Thank you to all the people who attended. Your voice makes a difference.
