The Tshwane metro council’s City Planning, Development and Regional Services committee was forced by the FF Plus to change an agenda point, whereby name boards containing only the name ‘Tshwane’ will be erected at the main entry routes to Pretoria, seeing that is in contravention with a court interdict prohibiting such boards.Mr. Willie Spies, attorney for the FF Plus, wrote a letter to the committee chairperson, Mr. CT Mokoena, warning him to cancel the committee meeting or to remove the relevant report from the agenda (letter available on request). The name boards are planned almost exclusively for Pretoria and hence it contravenes an interdict issued on 31 August 2007 by the Northern Gauteng High Court that prohibits the metro council from erecting structures referring to Pretoria as Tshwane.
The metro council’s legal department acknowledged that the FF Plus’ interpretation is correct and said that the matter is sub judicae and may not be discussed. It was proposed that all references to the name Tshwane should be deleted from the report for further discussions.
The FF Plus thanked Ms. Annemarie Sparg, ACDP councillor, for her opposition to the report while all other parties on the committee wanted the report to continue.
According to the original report of the metro’s City Planning, Development and Regional Services committee (submitted at its meeting today, 14 July) it is recommended that the name boards ‘carrying only the name Tshwane’ should be erected in Pretoria for the 2010 Soccer World Cup. The report also mentions that the boards would remain permanently after the World Cup tournament.
The boards will be placed at the following points:
N4 (East) Pretorius street, N4 (North) R566/R101 intersection, N4 (South) Transoranje street, N14 Potgieter street, N14 Eeufees street, N1 Atterbury/Charles streets, N1 John Vorster drive, N1 Stormvoël/Baviaanspoort streets and R21 Fountains circle.
According to Dr. Conrad Beyers, FF Plus councillor, the FF Plus’ legal letter forced the committee to stop any further discussions on the name boards. The report cannot continue as long as the name ‘Tshwane’ is used for Pretoria in it.
“Any decision to erect the name boards is illegal. Any council worker that executes such an order can be prosecuted for contempt of court. The FF Plus will lay charges at the police against any person or institution that gives an order to erect the name boards, as well as persons executing such orders,” Beyers said.
The name boards will cost R8.26 million and the decision is opposed by the metro council’s financial department, seeing no budget exists for it.
Contact:
Dr. Conrad Beyers
082 213 0585
