Cederberg Local Municipality

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Cederberg
Official seal of Cederberg
Seal
The Cederberg Local Municipality is located on the West Coast of South Africa, in the Western Cape north of Cape Town.
Location in the Western Cape
Coordinates: 32°15′S 19°00′E / 32.250°S 19.000°E / -32.250; 19.000Coordinates: 32°15′S 19°00′E / 32.250°S 19.000°E / -32.250; 19.000
CountrySouth Africa
ProvinceWestern Cape
DistrictWest Coast
SeatClanwilliam
Wards6
Government
 • TypeMunicipal council
 • Mayor(ANC)
Area
 • Total8,007 km2 (3,092 sq mi)
Population
 (2011)[2]
 • Total49,768
 • Density6.2/km2 (16/sq mi)
Racial makeup (2011)
 • Black African12.7%
 • Coloured75.7%
 • Indian/Asian0.3%
 • White11.0%
First languages (2011)
 • Afrikaans88.7%
 • Xhosa5.0%
 • Sotho2.5%
 • English1.9%
 • Other1.9%
Time zoneUTC+2 (SAST)
Municipal codeWC012

Cederberg Local Municipality is a local municipality which governs an area of the Western Cape province of South Africa stretching from the Cederberg mountains through the middle valley of the Olifants River to the Atlantic coast. It includes the towns of Clanwilliam, Citrusdal and Lamberts Bay, and the surrounding villages and farms. As of 2011 it had a population of 49,768.[2] It is located within the West Coast District Municipality and has municipality code WC012.

Geography[]

Topographic map of the Cederberg Local Municipality

The municipality covers a total area of 8,007 square kilometres (3,092 sq mi), stretching from the Atlantic Ocean in the west to the Doring River in the east. The Olifants River flows from south to north through the center of the municipal area. The Cederberg mountains rise from the eastern bank of the river. To the west of the river are lower ranges of hills descending to the coastal plain. The municipality abuts on the Matzikama Municipality to the north, the Hantam Municipality to the east, and the Witzenberg and Bergrivier Municipalities to the south.

According to the 2011 census the municipality has a population of 49,768 people in 13,513 households. Of this population, 75.7% describe themselves as "Coloured", 12.7% as "Black African", and 11.0% as "White". The first language of 88.7% of the population is Afrikaans, while 5.0% speak Xhosa, 2.5% speak Sotho and 1.9% speak English.[4]

The principal towns of the municipality are Clanwilliam (pop. 7,674) and Citrusdal (pop. 7,177) in the Olifants River valley, and Lambert's Bay (pop. 6,120) on the coastline. There are smaller agricultural settlements at Graafwater (pop. 2,261) and Leipoldtville (pop. 298), and a coastal village at Elands Bay (pop. 1,525).

History[]

At the end of the apartheid era, in the area that is today the Cederberg Municipality, there were municipal councils for the towns of Clanwilliam, Citrusdal, Lambert's Bay, and Graafwater. These councils were elected by the white residents, while the coloured residents of the towns were governed by management committees subordinate to the white councils. Rural areas fell under the West Coast Regional Services Council (RSC), while in Elands Bay there was a local council for white residents and a management committee for coloured residents under the authority of the RSC.

While the negotiations to end apartheid were taking place a process was established for local authorities to negotiate voluntary mergers. The four towns in the Cederberg area took part in this process, which resulted in the municipalities merging with their respective management committees to form new non-racial municipalities: Citrusdal in March 1992, Clanwilliam in April 1992, Lambert's Bay in June 1993, and Graafwater in January 1994.

After the national elections of 1994 a process of local government transformation began, in which negotiations were held between the existing local authorities, political parties, and local community organisations. As a result of these negotiations, the existing local authorities were dissolved and transitional local councils (TLCs) were created for each town and village. In January 1995 the municipalities of Clanwilliam, Citrusdal, and Lambert's Bay were replaced by TLCs, and Graafwater followed in the following month. Meanwile in December 1994 the Elands Bay local council and management committee were merged into the Piketberg TLC (the rest of which lies outside the Cederberg area).

The transitional councils were initially made up of members nominated by the various parties to the negotiations, until May 1996 when elections were held. At these elections the West Coast District Council was established, replacing the West Coast Regional Services Council. Transitional representative councils (TRCs) were also elected to represent rural areas outside the TLCs on the District Council; the area that was to become Cederberg Municipality included the Clanwilliam TRC and parts of the Piketberg and Vanrhynsdorp TRCs.

At the local elections of December 2000 the TLCs and TRCs were dissolved and the Cederberg Municipality was established as a single local authority incorporating both rural and urban areas. In 2011 the Cederberg Wilderness Area, previously a District Management Areas, was added to the municipality when District Management Areas were abolished.

Politics[]

The municipal council consists of eleven members elected by mixed-member proportional representation. Six councillors are elected by first-past-the-post voting in six wards, while the remaining five are chosen from party lists so that the total number of party representatives is proportional to the number of votes received. In the election of 3 August 2016, the Democratic Alliance (DA) won a majority of seats on the council, defeating the ANC, which previously had a majority. DA lost this majority in 2018 and formed a coalition with the Alliance of Democratic Congress to retain control of the municipality.

On 26 June 2019, DA councillor Bertie Zass voted with the ANC to remove the DA-ADC coalition from power. The elected Executive Mayor was Sylvia Quinta with Mariaan Nell as the Deputy Executive Mayor. The appointed Speaker was Paul Strauss. They are all party members of the African National Congress. The ward Zass previously held automatically became vacant, because of his party defection.[5][6][7][8]

On 22 July 2019, the Western Cape High Court ruled that the elections of the ANC councillors to senior municipal positions were unlawful. The court ordered the reinstatement of DA Mayor William Farmer and ADC Deputy Mayor Francina Sokuyeka.[9]However, in a by-election held on 18 September 2019, the ANC won the vacant ward from the DA. The ANC now holds a majority in the council.[10]

The following table shows the results of the 2016 election.[11][12][13]

Party Votes Seats
Ward List Total % Ward List Total
Democratic Alliance 8,440 8,455 16,895 55.2 6 0 6
ANC 5,507 5,483 10,990 35.9 0 4 4
912 867 1,779 5.8 0 1 1
221 225 446 1.5 0 0 0
EFF 123 135 258 0.8 0 0 0
52 56 108 0.4 0 0 0
27 32 59 0.2 0 0 0
38 38 0.1 0 0
The Peoples Independent Civic Organisation 3 20 23 0.1 0 0 0
Independent 6 6 0.0 0 0
Total 15,329 15,273 30,602 100.0 6 5 11
Valid votes 15,329 15,273 30,602 98.8
Spoilt votes 157 207 364 1.2
Total votes cast 15,486 15,480 30,966
Total voter turnout 15,505
Registered voters 24,931
Turnout percentage 62.2

The DA subsequently lost two seats to the African National Congress (ANC) in by-elections held on 12 December 2018,[14] and 18 September 2019.[15] The council was reconfigured as seen below:

Party Ward PR list Total
Democratic Alliance 4 0 4
ANC 2 4 6
0 1 1
Total 6 5 11

The local council sends two representatives to the council of the West Coast District Municipality: one from the ANC and one from the DA.[16]

References[]

  1. ^ "Executive Mayor". 26 August 2015.
  2. ^ Jump up to: a b c "Statistics by place". Statistics South Africa. Retrieved 27 September 2015.
  3. ^ "Statistics by place". Statistics South Africa. Retrieved 27 September 2015.
  4. ^ "Cederberg Local Municipality". Census 2011.
  5. ^ Rogue DA councillor resigns after helping ANC wrestle Cederberg local municipality from DA. Retrieved on 27 June 2019.
  6. ^ Rogue DA councillor helps ANC take over Western Cape’s Cederberg municipality. Retrieved on 27 June 2019.
  7. ^ ANC takes control of Cederberg Municipality, thanks to a DA councillor. Retrieved on 27 June 2019.
  8. ^ Anger after 'unlawful' ANC motion removes DA's Cederberg mayor. Retrieved on 27 June 2019.
  9. ^ Court removes ANC councillors as mayor, deputy mayor and speaker of Cederberg. Retrieved on 22 July 2019.
  10. ^ Recent municipal ward by-elections result in losses for the DA. Retrieved on 19 September 2019.
  11. ^ "Results Summary – All Ballots: Cederberg" (PDF). Electoral Commission. Retrieved 27 May 2017.
  12. ^ "Seat Calculation Detail: Cederberg" (PDF). Electoral Commission. Retrieved 27 May 2017.
  13. ^ "Voter Turnout Report: Cederberg" (PDF). Electoral Commission. Retrieved 27 May 2017.
  14. ^ "The ANC ends off the year on a high note in competitive wards". Daily Maverick. 13 December 2018.
  15. ^ ANC, FF Plus take ward each from DA as party loses support in key by-elections. Retrieved on 19 September 2019.
  16. ^ "Political composition of councils February 2017" (PDF). Western Cape Department of Local Government. February 2017. Retrieved 24 May 2017.

External links[]

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