Tshwane cuts EFF some slack

EFF Supporters. File photo: Leon Lestrade

EFF Supporters. File photo: Leon Lestrade

Published Apr 30, 2014

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Pretoria - The EFF will have another opportunity to make its planned rally at an Atteridgeville stadium a legal event, the City of Tshwane said on Wednesday.

This was after the city said earlier the Economic Freedom Fighters had lost its chance to hold a rally at the Lucas Moripe Stadium on Saturday.

The city said this was because the party failed to attend a meeting with the Tshwane events joint operations committee (JOC) earlier in the day.

City spokesman Blessing Manale said the meeting would be rescheduled for Friday at 10am.

The EFF would need to provide documents, including a venue permission letter, event overview, disaster management plan and public liability insurance to the events JOC.

On Tuesday, the EFF approached the High Court in Pretoria to challenge the city's decision to withdraw permission for the use of the Lucas Moripe Stadium.

The municipality initially granted the EFF permission to use the stadium but then withdrew it.

The party said in court papers it had already spent R5 million on the rally when the agreement was unilaterally cancelled.

Judge Sulet Potterill removed the EFF's application by agreement between the parties, saying it appeared that the dispute between them had gone away.

In the earlier statement, Manale said the EFF's failure to attend the meeting meant that the party's planned rally was “non-compliant and illegal”.

This was because the city's facilities could not be insured for the event, should it take place without the events JOC's approval.

Manale said that if the matter was not resolved in the meeting on Friday, the city would ask the High Court to hold the party in contempt of court for “propagating public defiance of the process ruled by the High Court”.

The EFF could not immediately be reached for comment.

Sapa

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