While the investigation continues into allegations of maladministration against Drakenstein Mayor Conrad Poole, another bomb has exploded over the valley’s administrative headquarters, with yet another senior official accused of, among other things, extortion, abuse of power, sexual harassment and racism.
This has placed the valley under a cloud of suspicion and questions being asked about how excellent the governance of Drakenstein is.
According to financial audits the municipality does come up trumps, but how well is it actually run?
Insiders who have had decades of service at the municipality say the headquarters in Berg River Boulevard in Paarl is no longer a pleasant safe haven to work at each day.
For the past six or seven years a “tyrannical rule” has prevailed, reminding many of the conservative administration in the mothballed apartheid years.
And apart from that, much municipal decisionmaking takes place behind closed doors. Shouldn’t an organisation that is a public entity be directly accountable to a tax paying public that pays its salaries?
As its motto goes, Drakenstein may well see itself as “A City of Excellence”, but isn’t the fish perhaps rotting from the head down?
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