I have submitted a formal request to the Overstrand Municipality under the Promotion of Access to Information Act (PAIA) for records relating to complaints arising from the Ward 7 committee meeting of 12 February this year.
These complaints, including mine of 13 February and a follow‑up on 27 May, concern the conduct of Cllrs Lombard and Gillion, and others, who, in my view, unlawfully prevented attendees from recording the meeting and had people forcefully removed.
I have requested records relating to the investigation and handling of these complaints, including the appointment and membership of the panel of councillors reportedly established to investigate them, witness statements, interviews, investigation reports, findings, recommendations and correspondence with Western Cape Local Government MEC Anton Bredell and his department.
There is a particular reason for seeking these records now.
In an email dated 17 February, the then Overstrand municipal manager, Dr Dean O’Neill, stated that the matter had already been referred to MEC Bredell. In another email on 16 April, he confirmed that an allegation of misconduct against Cllr Lombard had been tabled before Council and that the Speaker had appointed a panel of councillors to investigate and recommend appropriate action.
MEC Bredell informed me in an email on 6 August that he referred the matter to O'Neill and Cohen. It was clear from this email that MEC Bredell has not received any referrals or reports from either O’Neill or Cohen.
Neither Cohen nor Mayor Archie Klaas bothered to reply to any of my emails, and there has been no public clarity about what was investigated, by whom, what was found, and what action, if any, followed.
I have therefore asked the municipality to provide the relevant records, and I have received the reference number of my PAIA application.
The request was submitted on 2 October. Under Section 25(1) of PAIA, the municipality has 30 days to notify me of its decision. The statutory deadline is therefore 2 November 2026.
If the municipality refuses access to any records, I expect it to identify the specific legal grounds for doing so. If it claims an extension, I expect proper reasons.
After months of unanswered questions, the public deserves transparency about what happened at Ward 7 and what, if anything, was done about the complaints.
FROM: Sara Wessels – Sandbaai
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