This month marks a year since Corné Stoltz secured a landslide victory in Ward 4’s by-election. As an independent candidate without any party affiliations, Stoltz united 71.9% of the voters behind him on October 25 last year.
Stoltz called this by-election after he, the ward councillor at the time, resigned from the Freedom Front Plus and thus lost his seat in the Lekwa municipal council.
The step into the local political arena in 2021 was more of a push because of a sewage issue that drove Stoltz and many residents up a wall.
“I am not a politician. With my resignation from the party, I planned to leave the council altogether. However, when some people told me I would be unable to retain the seat as an independent councillor, I made it my mission to prove them wrong,” Stoltz admitted.
He is one of the six dozen odd independent councillors in SA, and despite not getting political or financial backing from a political party, going solo was Stoltz’s best decision, he told the Standerton Advertiser last week.
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“There is no more toeing party lines. I now take directives directly from my community.”
With the help of an active ward committee and social media, Stoltz has a direct line to his voters and likes to keep them informed on what is happening in the council.
“People are tired of politics. They just want someone to look out for their interests. When I ran as an independent candidate, I vowed not to get caught up in the political circus but to act in the best interest of my community and to vote accordingly on the items before the council,” he explained.
So, what has this independent councillor achieved in his almost 365 days in office? According to this metallurgical engineer and local businessman, Ward 4 residents are the most united in the municipality.
They work as a team to better their neighbourhood, filling potholes, giving attention to road infrastructure and repairing electricity cables.
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The theft and vandalism of electricity cables are non-existent because of cameras installed on high-voltage lines. They also tackle water leaks and regularly clean parks and public spaces, to name a few.
Entwined with the work is the Lekwa Rescue Team, which helped local schools with their back-to-school programmes, supplied food parcels to vulnerable families, spread Christmas cheer and even helped to supply neighbouring towns with water.
Last month, Stoltz set another trailblazing pace by being appointed as an independent MMC for Community Safety and Services.
This portfolio also forced him onto the Gert Sibande Regional Municipality’s council. Stoltz sees this position as an honour and will serve for the sake of the community.
