“Zombie Deal” Revival Slammed as Cape Town Is “Sold Off” to Developers

GOOD Speech delivered today at the City of Cape Town Council Meeting by Roscoe Palm, GOOD City of Cape Town Councillor:

The DA-run City is bending the rules to accommodate a favoured few. We are being asked to breathe life into a 17-year-old “Helen Zille Zombie Deal” that has already died three times.

Since 2009, Developer, Devmark has missed every deadline and collapsed every agreement, leading a legal arbitration to finally declare the deal void in 2022.

Legally, that should have been the end. But instead of accountability, we see a pattern of deliberate, autocratic choices. Geordin Hill-Lewis’ Autocratic Alliance has decided that the Supply Chain Management Policy is just a suggestion. While Clause 57 and Section 106 mandate that the City must combat “failure to perform,” this administration in the City Manager chose to look the other way. They had the power to investigate this 15-year failure; they had the duty to list this developer as a defaulter. They did neither.

Geordin Hill-Lewis’ Autocratic Alliance has decided that a “written warranty” from a failed developer is better than actual due diligence, accepting a self-guaranteed “assurance of capacity” that has failed for 15 years. Whose friends are these?

Geordin Hill-Lewis’ Autocratic Alliance has decided that our high-performance athletes don’t matter. You are trading a unique, fully covered, 250-metre international-standard track for a 400-metre outdoor substitute at Vygieskraal that cannot host elite competition. While Egypt and Nigeria build their status, this Alliance is ensuring that international training and events leave South Africa forever. High performance athletes like Carl Bonhuys and world class coaches like Elrick Kulsen tell me that our athletes’ performances are measurably suffering. Because of Geordin Hill-Lewis’ Autocratic Alliance.

Geordin Hill-Lewis’ Autocratic Alliance has decided that more than 10 000 citizens do not count as a “community”. MMC Higham, claims to serve Community Services, but you are ignoring ten thousand people who have begged you to save this facility. Community spaces are being taken away from communities, like Spencer Road Park, Deer Park. Baba Park is a disaster, brought to you by Geordin Hill Lewis’ Autocratic Alliance. You have decided that the only community that matters is the small circle of developers and promoters waiting to profit from this giveaway.

Geordin Hill-Lewis’ Autocratic Alliance has decided that “Economic Growth” means selling our silver at a 17-year-old discount. MMC Vos brings a “shrinking offer” selling 11 hectares of prime land in 2026 based on 2009 prices. Speaker, you cannot claim to be a “government of due process” while behaving like a rogue’s gallery of autocrats. This isn’t a “City of Hope” it’s a City for Sale brought to you by Geordin Hill-Lewis’ Autocratic Alliance.

Good Formation: GOOD was formed in December 2018.

Read More at the Source