This is our future
Btragedy, ecause of’the it s understandable Enyobeni that TotT’s queries about a new liquor licence application in Bathurst are low on the priority list.
The ECLB says they will respond once their inspector has provided them with more detailed information about it.
It is very difficult to think beyond the terror and tragedy of Enyobeni and the Soweto, Sweetwaters and Khayelitsha tavern massacres and it could seem frivolous to spend column centimetres on tiny Bathurst/Nolukhanyo with a recorded population of around only 7,000 people (citypopulation.de/).
But how our future looks depends on what we plan now.
In the ECLB’s response to Enyobeni is included: “We can’t be in all of the more than 1,000 liquor outlets in BCM at the same time ...” (DispatchLive, July 12: ‘Metro, liquor board vow to take hard line on under age drinking’).
BCM has a population of 884,000 (macrotrends.net). Crudely, one liquor outlet for every 884 people.
By contrast, the same population is served by 113 public health care facilities – one hospital for about 150,000 people (on average), one clinic for about 8,000 people (Cogta).
And, crudely, one library for every 130,000 people.
We spent time on this week’s lead story because it goes to the heart of public interest and how and why such decisions are made that affect communities in our province (and of course our municipality).
We asked ECLB 11 questions about the application for a new liquor licence for a property being sold in Bathurst. Many were about process and community representation.
But what we really wanted them to answer were the ones about vision and planning – how the ECLB sees its place within the bigger picture of spatial development, town planning and the sustainable development of communities, specifically local economic development and tourism.
Below are those questions: we hope we will receive a response and will share it with you when we do.
10. As a provincial authority that contributes to and is informed by the social, economic and administrative vision for the Eastern Cape, to what extent does the ECLB take into consideration the spatial development plans for specific areas (such as the Bathurst/ Nolukhanyo settlement). Over and above the recommendation from the local authority, how do you decide whether a proposed liquor outlet and the infrastructure and activity around it is in line with the spatial development plan?
11. The ECLB is closely associated with the department of economic development, environmental affairs and tourism. Are you familiar with the department’s vision for Bathurst/ Nolukhanyo as a tourist destination and its plans to nurture and develop this?