Stellenbosch Municipality Transformation Under Fire as DA Accused of Selective Outrage

A long shadow from 2018

Stellenbosch is once again in the headlines for all the wrong reasons. Six years after the Labour Court ordered the DA-led municipality to pay R750 000 to Zenobia Campbell, a qualified Coloured woman overlooked for a senior post in favour of a white candidate with only matric, questions about the town’s transformation record are resurfacing.

Back then, Campbell’s case was seen as a turning point, a legal affirmation that discrimination in hiring still ran deep in one of South Africa’s most famous municipalities. Yet today, the same concerns are echoing through council chambers.

Kannemeyer’s candid question sparks backlash

A leaked video from 2023 has thrust Acting Corporate Services Director Alexander Kannemeyer into the spotlight. In the clip, he questions why white men consistently come out on top in Stellenbosch’s hiring processes, despite other candidates scoring higher.

“We are never going to get this organisation right if we have that type of attitude,” Kannemeyer is heard saying. “What about our internal staff? The message we are sending is that they don’t have the capability and competency.”

Instead of sparking introspection, his remarks have drawn the DA caucus’s ire. The party has launched proceedings to suspend him, framing his concerns as “racist views” and “workplace bullying.”

Selective outrage?

For critics, the move reeks of double standards. The National Coloured Congress (NCC) accused the DA of “selective outrage,” pointing out that the municipality’s transformation failures are longstanding.

“This is not an isolated issue but part of a broader, troubling trend,” the NCC said. “The DA claims to be non-racial, yet its internal practices and appointments speak otherwise.”

The ANC caucus went further, accusing the DA of scapegoating Kannemeyer for structural problems it has failed to address for years. They argue council has no legal authority to suspend a permanent staff member and that the motion is both unlawful and politically motivated.

A bigger picture of exclusion

The controversy is not just about one man’s comments. It’s about a broader failure of transformation in Stellenboscha municipality that has long faced criticism for its overwhelmingly white, male-dominated leadership structure.

Residents and activists have taken to social media, with many noting that the Kannemeyer saga exposes an uncomfortable truth: despite years of rhetoric about equity and redress, Stellenbosch’s power corridors remain stubbornly unchanged.

Where does this leave Stellenbosch?

For many locals, the case has revived old wounds. Stellenbosch is not just a picturesque tourist hub; it is also a place where debates about identity, power, and inclusion are deeply felt.

The DA, meanwhile, finds itself on the defensiveportraying Kannemeyer as a workplace bully while critics argue it is dodging accountability on transformation. Six years after the Campbell ruling, the same uncomfortable questions remain unanswered: who gets to lead, and on what terms?

Until those questions are confronted honestly, Stellenbosch risks being remembered less for its vineyards and history, and more for being a town where transformation is spoken of, but rarely seen.