The May council meeting of the Stellenbosch Municipality was filled with drama on Wednesday 27 May with at least three councillors receiving warnings from the Speaker, various back-and-forths, and all council members of the main opposition party absent from council by lunchtime.
The 41st meeting of the local council had various contentious items on the agenda, while the 2026-’27 budget also tabled by executive mayor Jeremy Fasser.
It was comments on the more than R3 billion budget that landed the ANC in hot water with Speaker Quinton Smit.
Escorted out
During Councillor Jacobus Davids’ comments it seemed he could not get his points across without various points of order raised by the DA. Smit told Councillor Ayanda Tomose (ANC) he would not be granted his three minutes to comment on the budget as a result of his comrade exceeding his allotted time.
Tomose was up in arms, claiming he was being silenced by the ruling party, and after a back-and-forth Smit issued Tomose with a third and final warning.
The Khayamandi councillor was asked to leave the chambers. His initial refusal lead to a brief break and an escort from the chambers for the ANC’s chief whip.
‘Need greater than ever’
The Ward 12 councillor told Eikestadnuus it was the 10,7% rise in the electricity tariffs that he specifically wanted to discuss. He said the municipality should have done more to buffer residents from Eskom’s 9,01% increase for municipal bulk purchasers.
Along with the budget, Tomose added he wanted to comment on the municipality’s disaster management plan and housing pipeline.
“The need among our residents, especially in Khayamandi, is greater than ever. The effect of the recent floods was devastating for Khayamandi and shows that the municipality cannot stick to the same plans. More preparations must be made for disasters, because they are coming and getting more and more severe,” he said.
After Smit refused to allow Tomose back in the chambers, the ANC caucus walked out.
The rest of the council meeting continued as scheduled, during which Councillor John Andrews of the PA drew another warning from Smit following comments on the municipality’s “lack of prioritisation of farmworkers”.
