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CXPRESS
News & Views
23 July 2014
Bitou ‘not at risk’ during communication radio system switch-off Municipal manager Allen Paulse and Bitou mayor Memory Booysen released this statement last week, in reaction to a report in CXPRESS of July 16 under the heading ‘Unpaid radio service leaves Bitou vulnerable’
R
ECENT media reports created the impression that Bitou Municipality placed life and property at risk when the repeater system that regulates communication in the emergency services section (fire, traffic and law enforcement) was switched off due to the non-payment of
service providers. The facts are: A contractual dispute arose between the parties, which led to the disconnection of one channel of the communication line to a portion of the outer areas of Bitou Municipality. The entire Plettenberg Bay area was not affected at all. The “switching off” of this operating Channel 2 at
Spitzkop happened on Friday July 11. Since then, the Emergency Services section has reverted to using Channels 1 and 3 of the internal municipal frequencies for the coverage these channels offer. In order to address the challenge of pager systems not operating due to the repeater being “switched off”, a shift system has been introduced
whereby a crew is on standby from the Fire Station between 11pm and 7am until such time that the radio and pager system issue has been resolved and/or until 24-hour shifts are approved and implemented. Thus no life or property was at risk during this “switching off” of the one channel. Contractual dispute matters between the parties are attended to. The municipality is also investigating long-term communication solutions for our emergency services.
Knysna teacher’s sexual assault case bumped out to December
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HE case against a Knysna teacher, who allegedly raped and sexually assaulted a 12-year-old pupil at Fraaisig Primary last year, was postponed yet again. The 52-year-old man, who briefly appeared in the Knysna Regional Court on Monday, was expected to plead after which the trial was set to commence. But the matter was postponed after it came to light that the various parties did
not receive the necessary documents, including trauma reports, to continue with the trial. The matter was postponed until December 8. On August 19 last year the teacher, who is currently out on bail and no longer teaches at the school, allegedly pinned a pupil against a wall in the school’s photocopying room after she had helped him hand documents out to teachers, covered her mouth with his hands and pulled her
pants down before sexually assaulting and raping her. The man, who had been a teacher for 31 years and had been with the school for 29 years, was allegedly caught red-handed by the acting principal, who alerted authorities. This subsequently led to his arrest on August 23. The accused, however, denies the incident and claims he only touched her hip while trying to pull himself up from under a table where
he was busy picking up documents that had fallen out of one of the copier trays. He was released on R4,000 bail in September last year and agreed to go live with his family near Pacaltsdorp as part of his bail conditions to ensure he does not interfere with the victim or witnesses. The matter was transferred to the regional court earlier this year. [qncpfê"Uvcpfgt"/" Ictfgp"Tqwvg"Ogfkc
Plett mayor joins Clean campaigners to shine for Madiba
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OR the past several months, the Plett Clean Campaign has brought pride and exceptional cleanliness to the streets of Plett. Volunteers began their 67 minutes in honour of former SA president Nelson Mandela by cleaning up the Red Door location on the N2 and other areas throughout the town. Over 100 individuals showed up at 1pm to celebrate this special day. Together, the group swept the streets, discarding trash and random rubbish at the different locations. Although picking up trash is not typically considered a fun task, the event was successful as participants showed outstanding care for their community. Those who attended left with a sense of shared pride in the accomplishment of making their community a better, cleaner place. Plett Clean Campaign organiser Alyson Bryant was present and explained why
DEDICATED: Members of the Plett Clean Campaign honoured Nelson Mandela with 67 minutes to tidy the town – in the pic at left, mayor Memory Booysen helps community members from KwaNokuthula to turn an illegal dump site into a productive veggie patch; at right, Plett Clean stalwart Patrick Windvogel showcases his passion for this amazing community project
she started this initiative: “I was inspired to do this clean-up campaign because I couldn’t stand the mess of our tourist town. I wanted to provide a clean town and make it more attractive for the tourists. The municipality was at first a bit shocked with our
activities, but now realises we are here to help them. “We understand that their scope of work does not always allow them to tackle all the messy parts of town. We communicate with them on a regular basis and work together as much as we can to beau-
tify and keep Plett clean.” The campaigners meet every Tuesday from 5:30-6:30pm just off Main Street. The group aims to provide a voice and enhance the quality of life for tourists and residents while supporting actions that benefit the community.