INLSA

Lewis Pugh protesting against the construction of a multi-million rand toll plaza on Chapman's Peak.

NEO MADITLA

Staff Reporter

ENVIRONMENTAL campaigner Lewis Pugh has called on leadership from Premier Helen Zille over the construction of the R54 million toll plaza on Chapman’s Peak drive.

“That is R54m that could be spent on education, housing and clinics. We need real leadership from Helen Zille and she’s been very quiet,” he said today.

Pugh, who has also written to the UN Education, Scientific and Cultural Organisation (Unesco) about the matter, received an e-mail yesterday from Lazare Eloundou, the head of the UN body’s Africa World Heritage Centre, who said they had “contacted the South African authorities to get more information in order to take an appropriate action”.

Pugh said this morning that this was only the beginning and he was encouraged by the women who have been leading the protests on Chappies.

“This campaign has been led by three women and followed by women. It is about time the men of Cape Town stood up.”

He said Bronwen Lankers-Byrne, 59, who had gone on a hunger strike to stop the construction, was the most “courageous and inspirational woman I have ever met”.

Fiona Hinds, who was arrested on charges of malicious damage to property and trespassing, will appear in the Wynberg Magistrate’s Court this morning. Hinds was arrested and released on a warning for allegedly spray-painting “Murray and Robbers” on the netting at the construction site.

Meanwhile, lawyers representing the Residents’ Association of Hout Bay have received a reply from the provincial Department of Transport and Public Works and from toll concessionaire Entilini.

They had asked the provincial government, Entilini and SA National Parks (SANParks) for an undertaking that no construction work would continue until the issues raised were resolved. These issues include the fact there was a title deed restriction that the land could be used by SANParks only for conservation purposes under the Protected Areas Act, and they were not aware of any move to remove the restriction.

The lawyers said the land was proclaimed a Cape Floristic Region World Heritage Site by Unesco in January 2009, so to be able to construct the proposed toll plaza control room it would be necessary to withdraw the property from the Table Mountain National Park.

This would require a resolution by the National Assembly.

Entilini responded it would continue with construction as it had contractual obligations.

Hector Eliott, the head of ministry in the provincial government, said yesterday that they needed more time to respond to the Civil Rights Action Group and its alternative “pay-on-foot” proposal for Chapman’s Peak Drive.

neo.maditla@inl.co.za