South Africa: Zille Wins Rasool Over
Chris Van Gass
Cape Town
Mayor Helen Zille has come out on top in a row with the Western Cape provincial government over procedural moves for planning permission for the Fifa World Cup 2010 soccer stadium at Green Point.
In an apparent about-turn, Western Cape premier Ebrahim Rasool said yesterday that provincial planning MEC Tasneem Essop "will take and publicise her decision on these matters" by the end of the first week in January.
Rasool reaffirmed the province's commitment to ensuring that the city's "complex and interrelated applications for land use planning and environmental permission" relating to the proposed stadium and urban park on Green Point Common "are dealt with lawfully and as expeditiously as possible".
He said that, following a two-day meeting between the legal teams of the city and the province, and "on advice" from Essop's legal team, "this course of action agreed to constitutes the most legally responsible way forward".
In a week that saw the African National Congress-controlled provincial government square up against the Democratic Alliance-led multiparty city government, creating a new controversy over the stadium, an angry Rasool accused the city of a "major blunder" for failing to decide on the consent use for the development, incorrectly passing it on to the province for a decision. He also accused the city of incompetence.
Zille said the city had followed the correct procedures. She said the city could not pre-empt giving consent use for the stadium project before Essop had made her ruling on the rezoning.
Zille confirmed yesterday that both sides had agreed, "with advice from their legal teams", on the process ahead to finalise the last phase of development approvals for the area so that building could start on the R2,5bn stadium.
Essop will now take the decision on the rezoning application for the stadium on Green Point Common, before the city can decide on the consent-use application, a position that existed before the row became public this week.
The row led to counterallegations from Zille, who said the province wanted to "take over" the 2010 process from the city, but that this was not possible as Fifa had signed stadium agreements with host cities, not provinces.
Zille said yesterday it was wrong, however, to present the issue as one in which the city is pitted against the province.
The city would speed up the necessary consent-use decisions, to be taken by her in her capacity as executive mayor, or by full council, as soon as the province had decided on the rezoning.
Zille blamed the province for failing to meet the December 20 deadline for the rezoning decision. "Up until now the city and the province have enjoyed a good working relationship in the preparations for 2010.
"In an agreed work schedule dated October 11, the deadline for the provincial rezoning decision was December 20.
"This date was confirmed in writing between the city and the province, as well as verbally on repeated occasions," said Zille.
She said Rasool had assured her Essop would work throughout December to take the rezoning decision by the required deadline.
"It is regrettable that this deadline has not been met.
"The failure to take the decision on the rezoning is the cause of the delay. This decision is now extremely urgent, if we are to avoid undue delays in the preparations for 2010," said Zille.
News was from http://www.businessday.co.za
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