Knysna Mayor Accuses MEC Bredell of Politicking and Interference in Council Dissolution Bid
Knysna Mayor Accuses MEC Bredell of Politicking and Interference in Council Dissolution Bid. Knysna Mayor Thando Matika has accused Western Cape Local Government MEC Anton Bredell of politicking and interference. The National Council of Provinces (NCOP) was in the town on Tuesday to consider a decision by the provincial government to dissolve the council and place the town under administration.
Bredell told the select committee on cooperative governance that Knysna was facing complete service delivery collapse, while its residents were being exposed to serious health risks from regular sewage spills. But Matika said the problems of ailing infrastructure and poor future planning were not unique to the Garden Route town. The select committee has heard from provincial government that Knysna’s business and civil society were holding the town together. The municipality is currently governed by a coalition of the African National Congress (ANC), Patriotic Alliance (PA), Economic Freedom Fighters (EFF) and the Plaaslike Besorgde Inwoners (PBI), as one of the province’s 16 hung councils after the 2021 elections.
The council was originally under the control of a Democratic Alliance (DA) partnership with the Knysna Independent Movement. MEC Anton Bredell said the town had a leadership and management problem. “The conduct of the councillors, if you look at council meetings, you can describe it as a circus. People shouting at one another, and not talking and debating the issues and taking decisions in the best interests of the people they represent.” But Matika said that Bredell had excluded officials from oversight visits to the town, had applied double standards in challenging staff appointments, and residents had been encouraged by a DA councillor to submit complaints directly to him, rather than to the council. “He’s playing politics. Every decision we take in Knysna, he takes us to court or he’s challenging.
He doesn’t play an oversight or assistant role.” Bredell has denied the move to dissolve the council, which is due to take effect this weekend, was a political ploy, saying he was acting in the interests of the residents.
NCOP’s Role in the Dissolution Process
The National Council of Provinces select committee on cooperative governance visited Knysna on Tuesday, 23 September 2025, to deliberate on the Western Cape provincial government’s proposal to dissolve the municipal council and place the town under administration. This intervention, initiated by MEC Anton Bredell, comes under Section 139 of the Constitution, which allows for provincial oversight when a municipality fails to fulfil its executive obligations. The committee, comprising representatives from all provinces, heard submissions from various stakeholders, including municipal officials, civil society groups, and business leaders.
During the hearing, Bredell painted a dire picture of Knysna’s state, citing a “complete service delivery collapse” that has left residents vulnerable to health hazards like frequent sewage spills into lagoons and rivers. He described council meetings as chaotic, likening them to a “circus” where shouting overshadows constructive debate. “The conduct of the councillors, if you look at council meetings, you can describe it as a circus. People shouting at one another, and not talking and debating the issues and taking decisions in the best interests of the people they represent,” Bredell told the committee. He argued that leadership and management failures have led to financial mismanagement, with the municipality struggling to pay creditors and maintain basic services like water supply and waste collection.
The NCOP’s involvement is a crucial step before any dissolution can proceed, as it must approve the provincial government’s decision. If endorsed, an administrator would be appointed to run the municipality until fresh elections, potentially triggering by-elections within 90 days. This process has been used in other troubled municipalities, like eThekwini in Durban, where interventions addressed similar governance breakdowns.
Mayor Matika’s Defence and Accusations Against Bredell
Mayor Thando Matika, representing the ANC-PA-EFF-PBI coalition that took control after the 2021 local elections, strongly rejected Bredell’s assessment. She argued that Knysna’s challenges—infrastructure decay, poor planning, and service backlogs—are widespread across South Africa and not unique to her administration. “The problems of ailing infrastructure and poor future planning were not unique to the Garden Route town,” Matika said, pointing to similar issues in other Western Cape municipalities under DA control.
Matika accused Bredell of political bias and interference, claiming he has consistently undermined the council since the coalition ousted the previous DA-led partnership with the Knysna Independent Movement. She alleged that Bredell excluded municipal officials from oversight visits, applied “double standards” in scrutinising staff appointments, and encouraged residents to bypass the council by submitting complaints directly to him or DA councillors. “He’s playing politics. Every decision we take in Knysna, he takes us to court or he’s challenging. He doesn’t play an oversight or assistant role,” Matika stated.
Her comments echo sentiments from coalition partners like the EFF and PA, who view the dissolution bid as a DA tactic to regain control ahead of the 2026 local elections. The SACP has labelled it a “political witch-hunt,” while the ANC plans to approach national ministries for intervention.
Service Delivery Crisis: Sewage Spills and Health Risks
At the core of Bredell’s case is Knysna’s deteriorating service delivery, particularly environmental and health hazards from sewage spills. The town, famous for its lagoon and tourism, has seen repeated overflows into waterways, posing risks to residents and ecosystems. Provincial reports cite over 50 spills in 2025 alone, attributed to ageing pumps and poor maintenance. “Knysna was facing complete service delivery collapse, while its residents were being exposed to serious health risks from regular sewage spills,” Bredell told the select committee.
Business and civil society have stepped in to mitigate the fallout, providing temporary fixes like water tankers during outages. The committee heard that these groups are “holding the town together,” with organisations like the Knysna Ratepayers Association funding repairs when the municipality falters. Tourism, a R2 billion industry employing 10,000 locals, has suffered, with beach closures deterring visitors.
Matika counters that inherited problems from the DA era, like underfunded infrastructure, are to blame. Audits show the municipality’s debt at R200 million, with irregular expenditure of R50 million in 2024/25.
Political Background: From DA Control to Coalition Governance
Knysna’s instability stems from the 2021 elections, which produced one of the Western Cape’s 16 hung councils. The DA initially partnered with the Knysna Independent Movement to govern, but internal rifts led to its collapse in 2023. The ANC-PA-EFF-PBI coalition took over, promising stability but facing accusations of infighting and mismanagement.
The DA, controlling the province, has used Section 139 before in hung municipalities like Beaufort West. Bredell denies politics, insisting intervention is for residents’ benefit. “Bredell has denied the move to dissolve the council, which is due to take effect this weekend, was a political ploy, saying he was acting in the interests of the residents.”
Opposition like the GOOD Party has criticised the DA for selective interventions, noting stable DA-led councils avoid scrutiny.
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