The Great Knysna Fire was the result of a 2-month old fire in the bush on the outskirts of DA-controlled Knysna. Despite repeated complaints from residents, it wasn’t attended to by the Knysna Fire Department. A strong wind enraged the fire and cut the town off from the country, destroying billions of rands in homes and infrastructure, and taking lives (including 2 toddlers and an 8-month-old fetus).

The Municipality inappropriately investigated itself, Fire Chief Clinton Manuel absolving them and himself from responsibility. He was publicly backed by DA Mayor Eleanore Spies and Municipal Manager Kam Chetty (whom they DA had previously used in Oudtshoorn).

An independent investigation by Afriforum showed the Municipality’s report to be a lie. An article in Noseweek exposed a hidden report by CSIR concurred with Afriforum. As culpable homicide must be considered, the seriousness of this complaint is underlined.

However, the Municipality, Premier Helen Zille and the Western Cape Local Government have refused to respond to my detailed complaint despite repeated follow-ups.

Before the fire, the Fire Chief tried to intimidate me in Court in a trial involving a fireman friend of his. The Municipality and DA failed to respond to my complaint. After the fire, after I’d lost most of my possessions and rented home, the Fire Chief threatened me again. This time I recorded it. Still, the DA wouldn’t act. Instead the Fire Chief has left Knysna to take up training Cape Town’s firemen. No punishment, only promotion when you’re protected by the DA.

I encourage you to email Helen Zille and ask her why she hasn’t acted on it, why our lives in DA land mean less than cronyism. It’s an insult to every one who suffered that our Province’s leader doesn’t care about us.

Contact Helen through her secretary Donnae Strydom –  Donnae.Strydom@westerncape.gov.za. Especially contact her if you’re a blowhard DA supporter whose about to post another biased comment on my wall (this isn’t party politics, this is our lives!).

It will take seconds to copy and paste this e.g. “Helen Zille, I query you both as Premier and a DA leader. Did Mike Hampton, an activist from Knysna, send you a complaint regarding the Great Knysna Fire. If yes, when did you receive it, why have you not responded, and why have you not acted on it? Why have you allowed Hampton to be threatened, forced to leave town?”

NB: Donnae Strydom deletes my emails, probably because serving the DA leadership is more important than serving South Africans. I expect she has failed to report long-listed DA corruption to the police.

Ironically, she posts prayers on her Facebook page. Yesterday’s was liked by Knysna Speaker Georlene Wolmarans: “Father, please guard against unnecessary hate that is being spurned by the evil one in our country at this time, we bind that up in Jesus name.”

The DA has become our Devil of the Western Cape.