These papers were served after the fund totaling R600 120.08 had already been distributed equally between those families who had children on the ill-fated bus.
Kathleen Wessels, a mother who had two children involved in the Rheenendal bus accident and who lost her 12-year-old daughter, Rayleen in the tragedy, was mandated by the majority of those parents affected by the tragedy, to pursue court action against Group Editors.
Wessels had also served on the Rheenedal Bus Tragedy Fund's steering committee (representing affected parents in Goudveld and Bibby's Hoek), which was responsible for the administration and disbursement of the fund. According to members of that committee, Wessels was present and participated in the discussions which led to the decision to pay the families 25% of the total funds collected in cash and to issue vouchers for the balance.
Delon Barnard of Logan-Martin Attorneys explained: "At the second meeting of the steering committee on Thursday, September 22, 2011, it was agreed to co-opt an attorney as well as an auditor onto the committee to ensure that the distribution of the funds is done in a transparent matter." He explained further that he attended the next meeting of the steering committee, "with the specific mandate to discuss and explain the legal obligations which flow from the money donated by the donors.
Following my discussion with the steering committee, which at the time included both Wessels and Malan, Malan and Wessels agreed that the disbursement of the fund should include the issue of vouchers. Following this meeting, a letter was delivered to all affected families in which this arrangement was explained and detailed particulars were given of how funds would be distributed. I am not aware of any objections which were made to the proposed distribution of funds after the abovementioned letter had been delivered to the families in question."
During an interview with this newspaper in November 2011, Wessel said: "We are so happy and want to thank everybody who has been so kind to us by donating the money." During the same interview, Lisel Malan, who represented families of Highway West on the same steering committee and who is now also one of the parents suing Group Editors, expressed her gratitude, saying: "We are very happy to receive the money and the vouchers. We are all farm people and don't have many luxuries and with the vouchers we can make our lives a little easier."
Also during that interview, Wessels was asked about media reports at the time which claimed that the families were unhappy with the distribution of the funds and that Andrews had received a mandate from the majority of parents to have the funds paid over to him. To this she replied: "It was Gregg Pompi and Bitwell Sam that went to this attorney in Cape Town, and now we are all made to look greedy and ungrateful because of what they did and what they are saying to the media." Malan added, "The families are very, very thankful for what the Knsna-Plett Herald [Group Editors] and the people [donors] have done for us. The attorney was not involved from the beginning, the Knysna-Plett Herald and all those who gave money were. Why must the attorney get involved now?"
In Wessels' founding Affidavit presented to the High Court in Cape Town, Wessels said that she was mandated by the applicants to pursue court action against Group Editors during a meeting held in Rheenendal on November 13, a few days after the newspaper interviewed her.
Wessels was contacted for comment but cancelled the interview with this newspaper saying: "I told the attorney [Andrews] about you [journalist] and then he said that you must speak to him. We are not allowed to speak to the media, sorry."
At inception of the Rheenendal Bus Tragedy Fund, Barries Ferreira of the international auditing firm Mazars, was instructed by Group Editors to compile a factual findings report. Ferreira acted as independent auditor to the steering committee on which Wessels and other representatives served. While he did not personally attend the committee meetings, he reported to Rimbault, who in turn relayed the information to the committee. Ferreira explained, "This report was to ensure that the funds in the association's bank account could all be accounted for and that it had been utilised in accordance with the mandate of its steering committee and paid out to the affected parties as indicated by the school." However, in her affidavit, Wessels claimed, "I have no idea of what 'Mazars' is."
Despite the fact that Andrews was informed that Wessels had served on the same steering committee, he has not offered any explanation as to why Wessels made this claim.
In the interim it has not yet been established who would pay the legal fees of this costly High Court case should the parents' court action fail. Andrews has sought the senior council of Advocate Norman Arendse SC, the same defence council appearing for the Eugene Terre'blanche murder accused.
Andrews was asked whether he had explained to Wessels and the other applicants that "should their application against Group Editors have no merit, Group Editors would look to the families to pay its legal costs". This currently stands at R11 000, a figure that would increase dramatically. Once again no response was received from Andrews at time of going to press.
Barnard explained that the firm Logan-Martin had not charged for its time and the amount it quoted only included travel and disbursement costs. "If the attorneys and advocate in question were to draft a proper bill of costs at this stage, I anticipate the bill to be in the region of R25 000. If the matter is to be argued in the High Court in Cape Town, I think that the costs of Group Editors, will be not less than R50 000 and I estimate that the applicants' costs will be in line with this amount."
He added, "Bearing in mind that it is common cause that all monies in the relevant funds have been paid out, the purpose of the application is even harder to understand."
"A section in the served court documents reads: "In order to restore the dignity of the applicants, it is imperative that this honourable court should supervise and direct that the misery suffered by the applicants is not exploited by either the individual respondents, or by anyone else, not party to this application," and continues, "The applicants and their families have witnessed this exploitation over many years and their predecessors have also suffered the humiliation degradation, and indignity of having been bullied by persons who always thought they knew better."
This begs the question what the true reason behind this court action might be. Says Rimbault: "Are these traumatised families not now being exploited by others as they are trying to piece together their lives after the tragedy? Have they not perhaps been given incorrect advice, seeing as Group Editors has handled the fund in an open and transparent manner, sharing information with the families as well as ensuring that all monies were distributed equally? Did their attorney, Andrews, explain to them that should their application against us fail, as it surely will, they will be responsible for our legal costs?" She adds, "It is said that people often recognise in others that which they despise in themselves, and perhaps those advising the families are trying to redirect any exploitation away from its most recent source."
"It has been very difficult for me personally to accept the course this matter has taken and it is my personal belief that it is due to legal advice received by their attorneys that the families have taken this action," she says.
Especially in light of the fact that each affected family had happily received the cash and various vouchers, as attested by them in a December newspaper report, and for which they had signed receipt, a member of the public wondered, "why has this senseless action been brought against Group Editors when it was obvious from various interviews that the families were grateful for what they had received. One can't help but wonder what the true motivation behind this action is."
Rimbault concludes by giving her assurance to all individuals and companies who had donated money to assist the affected families of the Rheenendal bus tragedy, that every cent of their contribution was distributed to these families, as reported numerous times. A report by Mazars is available on request.
The same legal action was brought against the Eden District Municipality, which had administered a relief fund to assist with funeral costs and to facilitate the establishment of a legacy project for the Rheenendal area, as well as Deon van Zyl, a private volunteer who had spent three months, without remuneration, to assist all affected by the tragedy.
*Several other contradictory claims in the applicants' legal document, will be highlighted in a future edition.
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Corne Davidson, who survived the accident, shows off the laptop and desktop computer bought by his parents with proceeds from the fund.
ARTICLE: FRAN KIRSTEN, KNYSNA-PLETT HERALD JOURNALIST
