DA Dirty Tricks: Advocate Julie Seton admits role in Knysna Knews
Seven days ago, I exposed Advocate Julie Seton as one of the administrators of the Democratic Alliance’s propaganda Facebook page, Knysna Knews.
Seton has now admitted her role as administrator which is guaranteed to have serious implications for her, the 2016 municipal elections and the DA.
Knysna Knews had been run anonymously, spitting disinformation meant to confuse the public and discredit me as I seek justice for the abuse of public funds. Their campaign against me shifted into high gear after I submitted my allegations of corruption to Parliament on February 10 2016.
DA politicians and their cronies, however, were not anonymous as they commented with hate and lies, sharing to their personal profiles where more nonsense ensued. Shares and posts against me even appeared on the Knysna DA’s Facebook page as well as the pages of Wards 9 and 10 (which are controlled by two men who became councillors at the same time, Mark Willemse and Peter Myers).
Advocate Julie Seton’s role is made more sinister by the fact that she’s married to a high ranking, DA politician who I’ve accused as being one of those who failed the public trust with regards maladministration and corruption. That DA Politician (as I call her), and others, have benefited from Knysna Knews’ disinformation campaign. By relationship, so has Seton i.e. she must be considered to have also acted out of self-interest.
Seton sinks deeper into the mud when considering that she has somehow been involved in all the court cases I was flooded with, cases that benefited the DA even if they were launched in individual capacities. As I had no money for defence and no legal knowledge, I began by losing cases. That trial of fire has taught me a lot which will stand me in better stead in the future.
In the comment section on aspirant DA Councillor Martin Young’s Facebook page (which has also been used to attack me), Seton revealed herself on March 5 with:
“A community page is precisely that. From onset, I have made no secret of the fact I was involved as many of you know. I personally endorse the existence of a page putting out a researched alternate view to the wild unfounded opinions Hampton deems fit to post all over the internet and social media.”
I consider her choice of words to be a continuation of her being disingenuous, her giving the false appearance of being honest or sincere because the timeline of events suggests otherwise:
1. Knysna Knews operated anonymously the past 17 months.
2. Seton never revealed her identity despite Knysna Knews repeatedly being asked.
3. As far as I know, Seton has never done so anywhere online.
4. I’ve known for a long time that she and another were behind the page, having been informed by someone in her social circle and another in the Knysna Municipality. Her bragging, over wine (as it was claimed more than once), is not the best definition of honesty and transparency.
5. Seton and her accomplice never responded to my email on Feb 21 about their involvement (note that Carl Jeppe, Seton’s instructing attorney, never responded either).
6. Even after I exposed Seton with my blog on Feb 29, she wasn’t forthcoming.
7. On March 4, she appeared in Court, representing Mark Allan against me. Allan has been the biggest defamer of me, even boastful that he was involved in propaganda. He’s suing me, ironically, after i revealed his 10 fake identities. He may even win on the technicality of my evidence having not been included (again).
8. I told the Magistrate that Seton was involved in an online propaganda campaign against me and that i was filing for a Protection Order against Seton, immediately after the trial. I showed her my file for the case (which is extensive – my blog only touched on the subject).
9. On March 5, Mark Allan stated on Dr Martin Young’s Facebook page that I had exposed Julie Seton as an admin of Knysna Knews. His comment reads as an agreement rather than a statement of fact. I believe that he’d known Seton’s identity all along and had been in regular contact with her.
10. Julie Seton then comments to him, seemingly having no choice but to admit her identity, but claiming it was willingly known all along.
11. I consider Seton to be now, badly, attempting damage control. Why would Seton have previously made it public considering it puts her in serious contravention of the rules governing the ethics of advocates which she undoubtedly knows I’ll use to seek her disbarment? Disingenuous, indeed.
Note that the DA’s Eastern Region Manager, Jaco Londt, has failed to respond, for over 2 weeks, to my complaint against the DA and Knysna Knews.
I have a 60-day suspended sentence hanging around my neck, the result of being held in contempt of court for blogging about Seton’s married partner, a Mayoral Committee member, during the court process. Although I will disagree that I’m in contravention, It’s plausible to think that they will try and have me arrested. It’s plausible that the Knysna SAPS, who are not fans of my criticism, particularly after the Burmeister case, would oblige.
But everything that happens to me will one day be seen in the bigger context when all these cases and happenings become one case. The DA is the connection to all of them. The DA’s motives will, eventually, be severely questioned, all the way up to Helen Zille.
Whatever happens to me only increases the damages that I will claim, not only for myself but for Knysna.
The DA’s use of Knysna Knews and Facebook has been extremely dirty politics. If the DA tries to shove this under the carpet or make it go away quietly, they will fail.
There’s a rich clique of people that I believe are abusing and controlling the DA and the Knysna Municipality – they need to be stopped. They are going to keep throwing obstacles in my way but I’m determined to gain justice for myself and Knysna.