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During a sitting of the Western Cape Provincial Parliament this week, Premier Alan Winde shared shocking information pertaining to the deterioration of local governance systems in the Knysna Municipality.

The Premier provided explicit detail as to the extent of the chaos under the current unstable coalition, where residents are effectively paying double in taxes but receiving diminished services. This includes some Knysna neighborhoods enduring up to three weeks without water.

The Auditor General this week revealed that Knysna has received a qualified audit opinion with findings for the 2023/24 financial year, further underscoring the critical governance crisis.

Dave Bryant, MPP, DA Western Cape Spokesperson on Local Government said: “The Premier’s description of the municipality’s state was deeply troubling. Basic services in Knysna have effectively collapsed in many places. The Premier has described how the first time the water and sanitation systems failed, mud spewed from the pipes and even a rotting corpse was discovered in the municipal water tank. Now, nine pumps have failed, and the N2 highway running through the town is riddled with potholes.”

It is unacceptable that residents must endure this level of dysfunction. The Western Cape Provincial Government has repeatedly stepped in to assist the Knysna Municipality by providing engineering services, water trucks, and even initiating a waste removal programme. However, the provincial government cannot run our municipalities.

Bryant added: “The DA in the Western Cape will intensify our oversight efforts to restore accountability. For this reason, I will make it a priority for the Standing Committee on Local Government to conduct an oversight visit to Knysna in order to assess the state of other basic services and to make recommendations for drastic improvement. This will take place while further support programmes are also being considered.”

Issued by MPP Dave Bryant - DA Western Cape Spokesperson on Local Government