GEORGE NEWS - The Western Cape High Court yesterday (26 October) dismissed the urgent application by Donovan Saptoe, former GOOD councillor in the Garden Route District Municipality.

Saptoe, a former traffic chief of George Municipality, brought an urgent High Court application against the party after GOOD’s National Management Committee terminated his membership of the party on 1 October.

In a statement issued by Brett Herron, GOOD Secretary-General and Member of Parliament, he said Saptoe claimed his membership of GOOD had been unfairly terminated and sought to interdict GOOD from replacing him as councillor in the district municipal council.

Herron said Saptoe’s membership was terminated after he was unable or unwilling to account for R162 000 of party funds allocated to GOOD’s by-election campaign, which he managed, across three wards contested in George on 19 July 2023.

Herron said the High Court struck Saptoe’s application from the roll with costs.

Saptoe told George Herald today that the court’s decision was based only on the “urgency “ of his case and that the merits of his application will be addressed at a later stage. “I still dispute the manner in which GOOD is currently going to work and the manner in which they ended my membership.”

“GOOD has instructed our attorneys to issue summons against Saptoe, and his wife Roslyn, for R162 000 and we have reported the unaccounted for funds to the Hawks. We welcome the court’s decision. It assures our members and our supporters that GOOD holds all its members to the same high standard of conduct provided for in law and in our party’s constitution,” Herron said.

Saptoe said that he has also instructed his lawyers to issue summons against Herron for his “false allegations about the R162 000 and the fact that these allegations are tarnishing my reputation”.

“Everyone in GOOD knows that I presented serious complaints against Herron to the GOOD party on 29 September. By 1 October my membership was suspended, so it is clear that things are being hidden.

“I welcome the investigation by the Hawks if a case had indeed been opened, because it will be easy to disprove the allegations.

“At the end of the day Herron will have to answer to the complaints levelled against him,” Saptoe said.

The relationship between Saptoe and Good has soured since May this year when Herron still praised Saptoe as “a true community leader” and said he would be playing a leading role in securing votes for GOOD in the 2024 municipal elections.

‘We bring you the latest Garden Route, Hessequa, Karoo news’