Municipality almost loses vehicles to Sheriff

Kouga Municipality almost had to hand over nine of its service-delivery vehicles to the Sheriff of the Court at Jeffreys Bay this afternoon.

Kouga Mayor Elza van Lingen said the Sheriff had arrived at the municipal workshop with an execution warrant to remove eight bakkies and a truck following the municipality’s failure to honour a Labour Court order dating back to 2015.

The outstanding amount is for R152 324, inclusive of the award money as well as court and sheriff’s charges.

“This is yet another old sin from the previous Council and senior management that has come back to haunt the current leadership,” she said.

She said the municipality had been able to stop the vehicles from being removed.

“It would have been disastrous for service delivery had the vehicles been taken since the fleet that we inherited from the old Council was already insufficient and in a terrible condition.”

She said the municipality has arranged for the monies to be paid over as a matter of urgency.

An investigation is also underway as to why correspondence from the court and attorneys was ignored.