Various stakeholders in the Knysna Local Municipality have accused the Executive Council of the Western Cape (Western Cape Government) of invoking section 139 (1)(b) of the Constitution for political reasons and not because there are exceptional circumstances that exist to dissolve the municipality.
These views were shared with the Select Committee on Cooperative Governance and Public Administration (Traditional Affairs, Human Settlements and Water & Sanitation) during its visit to Knysna this week to assess the constitutional, procedural and substantive matters related to the intention by the Western Cape Government to invoke section 139 (1) (c) of the Constitution in the municipality.
“The reality is that this intervention represents executive overreach and abuse of process by the Western Cape provincial executive,” said one municipal councillor, Mr Thando Matika, who is the executive mayor of the municipality. “Most of the challenges raised for the intervention are historical issues that the current administration has inherited from the previous DA-led administration.”
The mayor's view was supported by another councillor, Ms Susan Campbell, who, in rejecting the intervention, suggested that the 90 days when an administrator will be appointed is not enough time to overturn years of infrastructure dilapidation in the municipality. “The only reason we are sitting here is the water issue. The major challenge the municipality faces is the missing water pumps located in the industrial area,” said Ms Campbell. “This council is being dissolved not because the council is dysfunctional but because the provincial executive has not done enough to support the municipality in resolving the disagreement with the service provider appointed to fix the pumps.” Ms Campbell further argued that the Municipal Public Accounts Committee was making headway in holding officials accountable for the municipality's water and sanitation challenges.
The Knysna Business Chamber also did not support the intervention, based on the view that the current council had not created the challenges faced by the municipality, but that these challenges were of a historic nature. “We do not support the invocation of section 139 (1)(c), but we advocate for section 139 (1)(b). Businesses in Knysna are losing jobs because they are dependent on tourism for their livelihoods. Where is the administration in resolving these challenges? Who will be appointed as an administrator, and what will they do in 90 days? Even Superman will not be able to achieve anything in 90 days. The problems we face today did not start today but started many years ago,” said Mr John Oosthuizen from the Chamber.
Section 139 of the Constitution provides for a provincial government to intervene when a municipality cannot or does not fulfil an executive obligation, such as the delivery of basic services in terms of the Constitution or legislation. The interventions under Section 139 vary in their scope and intrusiveness, depending on the type and seriousness of the governance or financial crisis. In the case of Knysna Local Municipality, the provincial government opted for S139 (1) (c) - dissolving the council, which is often a last resort after other measures have been exhausted. Some stakeholders argue for other measures, such as Section 139(1)(b), where the provincial government assumes the municipality's executive function and takes over certain executive functions of the municipality to ensure essential services and responsibilities are carried out.
Another councillor, Ms Sharon Sabbagh, in turn, argued that the town needs an opportunity to reset and requires an administrator to address critical service delivery issues. “We fully support the invocation of Section 139 (1)(c) because the municipality, the council and the Western Cape Government have exhausted all other remedies, inclusive of the Section 154 recovery plan, which failed dismally,” Ms Sabbagh said.
In response, the Western Cape MEC for Local Government, Environmental Affairs and Development Planning, Mr Anton Bredell, said that there was nothing political about the intervention, and that a dysfunctional council was contributing to the challenges the municipality faces. According to the MEC, the council was making illegal appointments of people who did not meet the qualifications and requirements advertised for senior management positions.
Responding to concerns about the timing of the intervention that are problematic, especially given the upcoming local government elections next year, the MEC argued that there was never a right time to invoke Section 139. “History has proved that Section 139 interventions were not functional because we wait too long. We need to fix the systems so that the people of Knysna can benefit. There is no political intervention,” Mr Bredell said.
The committee appreciated the reports indicating general administrative and governance improvement in the municipality but highlighted the need to resolve the water challenge issue. “We, therefore, give the mayor 14 days to table a comprehensive plan on how to resolve the water challenges,” said the Chairperson of the committee, Mr Mxolisi Kaunda. “This plan must include measures to find solutions to the dispute between the municipality and the service provider that is fixing the water pumps.”
By Malatswa Molepo
25 September 2025
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