Have your say about proposed new wards

KOUGA residents will have their say about the proposed new ward demarcation for the region this week.

The Kouga Municipality will be having public meetings in all ten wards over the next two weeks.

Kouga Corporate Services director, Linda Simanga, said draft municipal boundaries were drawn up by the Municipal Demarcation Board for consideration by municipalities following the national and provincial government elections in April this year.

According to the draft, Kouga will from 2011 consist of 15 wards and have 29 councillors.

Simanga explained that these numbers were based on the number of registered voters in the Kouga area, as informed by the Independent Electoral Commission following the national and provincial elections in April 2009.

The information was published by the minister of Cooperative Governance and Traditional Affairs in the Government Gazette (nr 32407), dated July 15.

Documentation, including maps, about the new boundaries will be available from municipal libraries from Friday, November 6. CDs may also be requested from Tertius Snyders at 042 2002 200.

Simanga said public meetings would be held where residents will have the opportunity to agree, disagree or reach a consensus concerning the draft boundaries.

“If, during the consultative period, residents agree with the proposal by the Municipal Demarcation Board, the minister will promulgate the wards.

“Should there be no consensus, the Municipal Demarcation Board will visit the municipality to consider new inputs whilst ensuring there is full compliance with legislation and the set criteria.”

The meetings will start at 6pm.

The proposed dates are November 11: Wards 1 (Sea Vista Community Hall), 2 (Pellsrus Community Hall), 4 (Kruisfontein Civics) and 10 (Ramaphosa Hall).

On November 12 meetings will be held in wards 3 (Newton Hall), 6 (KwaNomzamo Hall), 7 (Thornhill Clubhouse) and 9 (Vusumzi Landu Hall).

The last two ward meetings have provisionally been scheduled for November 17. Ward 5 will meet at the Kruisfontein Civics Hall and ward 8 at the Ithemba Church.

Changes in the schedule will be communicated to the relevant wards.

Further information is available from Tertius Snyders at 042 2002 200.