The Democratic Alliance (DA) and GOOD party have welcomed the arrest of three senior officials in Knysna, South Africa, over alleged kickbacks linked to a municipal security contract. The arrested individuals are former mayor Thando Matika, acting municipal manager Boy Manqoba Ngubo, and acting chief financial officer Busisiwe Lubelwana. They are expected to appear in the Knysna Magistrates' Court on October 5, on corruption charges.
The DA's Knysna mayoral candidate, Levael Davis, said the arrests reinforced the party's concerns about the municipality's management of public money. Davis stated that the DA had spent three years pushing for greater scrutiny and accountability in the municipality. He added that the arrests proved that the DA's fight for accountability was about serving the people of Knysna, not politics.
The arrests come amid ongoing political instability in Knysna, with Matika recently removed as an ANC councillor for standing as an SACP candidate in the upcoming local government elections. According to police, the three officials allegedly solicited kickbacks from a businessman holding a municipal security contract in exchange for the continuation of the contract. Hundreds of thousands of rands are believed to have already been paid.
Davis said the DA had consistently pushed for greater accountability in the municipality, including efforts to block illegal cadre deployments. He noted that the Western Cape Government had proposed invoking Section 139, but this was rejected, and the proof now confirms it was justified. Davis emphasized that accountability cannot end with arrests and that every available mechanism must be used to recover municipal funds if they were unlawfully lost.
GOOD Garden Route Municipality councillor and mayoral candidate Rosa Louw said the arrests were a serious development, given that they involved three of the municipality's most senior positions. Louw stressed that the allegations struck at the trust residents placed in local government. She noted that the accused remained entitled to due process and that the allegations must now be tested in court.
Louw emphasized that municipal contracts involved public money and that those responsible should be held accountable if the allegations were proven. She said that nobody should have to pay anyone on the side to secure or retain work from a municipality. GOOD welcomed the investigation and expected the municipality to cooperate fully with law enforcement.
Both the DA and GOOD have called for the criminal and SIU investigations into the security tender to be pursued to their conclusion, with one standard of accountability regardless of political party or position. The parties emphasized that every rand lost to corruption was money that could have been spent improving communities and delivering services to residents. Knysna deserves better leadership that understands that public office is about serving people, not serving oneself.
Key points
- Three senior officials in Knysna arrested over alleged kickbacks linked to a municipal security contract.
- DA and GOOD parties welcome arrests, call for accountability and thorough investigations.
- Arrests come amid ongoing political instability in Knysna.
