We are not aligned to any political party - demarcation board

7 June 2016

Pretoria - The Municipal Demarcation Board says it is not aligned to any political party and does not help anyone settle political scores.

"The fact that several organisations and political parties are upset with the board is not an indication of our neutrality and independence," deputy chairperson Ashraf Adam told reporters on Tuesday.

"It is an indication that we do our work without fear or favour."

Not everyone would be happy with demarcation decisions, he said.

"In the demarcation process, there will be people who are offended, people who are affected and there will be people who are not happy. It doesn't mean we must not be engaging or consulting with them," he said.Adam said the board did not take its duties lightly and it was conscious of the protests and extreme violence that had followed some of its recent decisions.

He, however, declined to go into detail regarding the processes that still needed to unfold in Malamulele and Vuwani, Limpopo. He said they had filed Constitutional Court papers to deal with the issue.

On April 29, the Polokwane High Court dismissed the Masia Traditional Council’s application to set aside the board's decision to merge the underperforming Vuwani municipality with parts of the Malamulele municipality in the Vhembe district.

Fifty schools were vandalised or burnt down during subsequent protests.

Adam was briefing reporters ahead of a conference on demarcation and spatial transformation the board would host later in June. It would bring together experts, lawmakers, government departments, public sector institutions, and academics.

This article first appeared on News24, see here.