The Democratic Alliance (DA) welcomes the decision by the Sarah Baartman District Municipality (SBDM) Council, taken on 27 May 2025, to initiate the dissolution of the Cacadu Development Agency (CDA). This long-overdue step follows sustained pressure from the DA to address the agency’s chronic financial mismanagement and operational failure.
Since its inception in 2012, the CDA has received over R63 million in public funding without delivering a single successful developmental project. The proposed allocation of R6.71 million for the 2024/2025 financial year, of which more than R4.8 million was earmarked for employee-related costs, once again revealed the agency’s misplaced priorities and lack of meaningful results.
The DA has consistently raised these concerns.
On 4 March 2025, DA Leader of the Official Opposition in the Eastern Cape Legislature, Dr Vicky Knoetze MPL, wrote to the MEC for Cooperative Governance and Traditional Affairs, Zolile Williams. This was followed by a second letter to Premier Oscar Mabuyane on 24 March 2025. Both letters outlined the CDA’s failure to fulfil its mandate and called for its immediate disbandment.
A supporting letter from myself reiterated this call and reflected the frustration of local representatives with the agency’s poor performance. We argued that CDA funding should instead support development and skills-based programmes that deliver measurable impact.
The SBDM Council’s resolution is a welcome acknowledgment of what the DA has long maintained: the CDA is beyond reform. Its continued inability to deliver, despite significant public investment, is a clear example of a failed state-owned entity.
The DA applauds this decision as a victory for accountability and responsible governance. We will continue to monitor the winding-down process to ensure transparency, fiscal discipline, and that redirected funds are invested in initiatives that genuinely uplift communities in the Sarah Baartman District.