Town to take back power station

2010-05-20 18:03

Bloemfontein - The Free State High Court in Bloemfontein has ordered that the selling of a power station by the Moqhaka local municipality (Kroonstad) be nullified, the Freedom Front Plus said on Thursday.

Free State FF Plus leader Abrie Oosthuizen said the Moqhaka municipality and the company who bought the property, Bio Energy Africa, were ordered to pay the costs.

The power station and the property must be placed back on the municipality's books.

The FF Plus took the matter to court after the Moqhaka municipality sold the power station for R8m to Bio Energy Africa, without following the right procedures.

'Ignoring the law'

The property was registered in the name of Bio Energy Africa after the municipality also supplied the bond of R8m.

Oosthuizen said Bio Energy Africa never made a payment on the bond, while the value of the property was much higher than R8m.

He said through the court case, the FF Plus protected the taxpayers' interests and Moqhaka's property.

Oosthuizen said Thursday's judgment was nevertheless "a bad day" because a political party was forced to use the court to press a government authority to use statutory requirements.

"It is a growing tendency that municipalities, provincial governments and the national government are ignoring the country's laws," he said.

- SAPA