Bitou Local Municipality

Bitou
Local municipality

Seal

Location of Bitou Local Municipality within the Western Cape
Coordinates: 33°55′S 23°25′E / 33.917°S 23.417°E / -33.917; 23.417Coordinates: 33°55′S 23°25′E / 33.917°S 23.417°E / -33.917; 23.417
Country South Africa
Province Western Cape
District Eden
Seat Plettenberg Bay
Wards 7
Government[1]
 • Type Municipal council
 • Mayor Memory Booysen (DA)
Area
 • Total 992 km2 (383 sq mi)
Population (2011)[2]
 • Total 49,162
 • Density 50/km2 (130/sq mi)
Racial makeup (2011)[2]
 • Black African 45.2%
 • Coloured 31.2%
 • Indian/Asian 0.5%
 • White 16.9%
First languages (2011)[3]
 • Afrikaans 43.4%
 • Xhosa 38.0%
 • English 13.3%
 • Other 5.3%
Time zone SAST (UTC+2)
Municipal code WC047

Bitou Local Municipality (formerly known as Plettenberg Bay Municipality) is a municipality part of Eden District Municipality located in the Western Cape Province of South Africa. Its municipality code is WC047.

Geography

The municipality covers an area of 992 square kilometres (383 sq mi) between the Indian Ocean and the Tsitsikamma Mountains around the town of Plettenberg Bay. It is the easternmost municipality on the coast of the Western Cape, with its eastern edge at the Bloukrans River forming the border with the Eastern Cape. It abuts on the Knysna Municipality to the west, the George Municipality to the northwest, and the Kou-Kamma Municipality to the east.

According to the 2011 census the municipality has a population of 49,162 people in 16,645 households. Of this population, 45.2% describe themselves as "Black African", 31.2% as "Coloured", and 16.9% as "White". The first language of 43.4% of the population is Afrikaans, while 38.0% speak Xhosa and 13.3% speak English.[4]

A majority of residents of the municipality live in the town of Plettenberg Bay, which in 2011 had a population of 31,804.[5] On the other side of the Keurbooms River mouth from Plettenberg Bay is the coastal resort of Keurboomstrand (pop. 475), while the resort of Nature's Valley (pop. 460) is situated further east at the mouth of the Groot River. The Griqua settlement of Kranshoek (pop. 5,597) is situated west of Plettenberg Bay. In the interior of the municipality are villages at Kurland (pop. 4,033) and Wittedrif (pop. 1,822).

Politics

The municipal council consists of thirteen members elected by mixed-member proportional representation. Seven councillors are elected by first-past-the-post voting in seven wards, while the remaining six are chosen from party lists so that the total number of party representatives is proportional to the number of votes received. In the election of 18 May 2011 no party obtained a majority; the Democratic Alliance (DA) and the African National Congress won six seats each, with the remaining seat going to the Congress of the People (COPE). The DA and COPE formed a coalition to govern the municipality.[6]

The DA won a ward from the ANC in a by-election held in 2014, and now govern Bitou alone with an outright majority of seats on the council.[7]

The following table shows the results of the 2011 election.[8][9]

Party Votes Seats
Ward List Total % Ward List Total
Democratic Alliance 7,950 8,552 16,502 47.6 2 4 6
African National Congress 7,825 7,955 15,780 45.5 5 1 6
Congress of the People 466 473 939 2.7 0 1 1
Independent 780 – 780 2.2 0 – 0
African Christian Democratic Party 295 277 572 1.6 0 0 0
Plettenberg Bay Community Forum 34 48 82 0.2 0 0 0
Cape Party 21 23 44 0.1 0 0 0
Total 17,371 17,328 34,699 100.0 7 6 13
Spoilt votes 249 241 490

The local council sends two representatives to the council of the Eden District Municipality: one from the Democratic Alliance and one from the African National Congress.[6]

References

  1. ↑ "Contact list: Executive Mayors". Government Communication & Information System. Retrieved 22 February 2012.
  2. 1 2 "Statistics by place". Statistics South Africa. Retrieved 27 September 2015.
  3. ↑ "Statistics by place". Statistics South Africa. Retrieved 27 September 2015.
  4. ↑ "Bitou Local Municipality". Census 2011.
  5. ↑ Sum of the Main Places Bossiesgerf, New Horizons, Kwanokuthula and Plettenberg Bay from Census 2011.
  6. 1 2 "Political composition of councils" (PDF). Western Cape Department of Local Government. August 2012. Retrieved 17 August 2012.
  7. ↑ http://www.iol.co.za/news/politics/important-win-for-da-in-plett-by-election-1.1753127#.VmIESP3bLcs
  8. ↑ "Results Summary – All Ballots: Bitou" (PDF). Independent Electoral Commission. Retrieved 18 September 2012.
  9. ↑ "Seat Calculation Detail: Bitou" (PDF). Independent Electoral Commission. Retrieved 18 September 2012.

External links

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