Kouga logo to go blue, with new wording

Change to be phased in as faded council signs and vehicles are replaced over time

THE DA-governed Kouga Municipality is changing the colours of its logo – with blue remaining, while black, green, gold and white will be removed. The municipality was taken over by the DA – with blue as its colour – following the local government elections in August.

The ANC flag has equal horizontal bands of black, green and gold.

The decision to alter the logo’s colours was passed at a council meeting last week.

ANC caucus leader Malibongwe Dayimani said yesterday the logo might as well be changed to the DA’s branding.

Asked why the ANC did not object, Dayimani said: “They are a majority, so opposing it would have been useless.”

Kouga Municipality speaker Horatio Hendricks was thrilled with the new colour, saying blue represented truth.

“No one opposed this in council, so the ANC councillors also approved the colour. This has nothing to do with the DA,” he said.

The old vision statement, “Prosperity through vision”, will be replaced with “Good governance through service excellence”.

Administration, monitoring, evaluation and special projects director Thobeka Tom reported to the council that Kouga Municipality needed a new corporate identity.

“As the vision was unanimously decided on by the political leadership, it is important that the logo be discussed to align the vision, and for the community to understand the new vision of Kouga,” Tom said.

She said the logo symbolised the values an organisation upholds.

It was decided that the logo would remain the same but would have one colour – blue.

“Colour is the key element in logo design and plays an important role in brand differentiation,” her report said.

The council agreed to the recommendations, but ANC councillor Virginia Camealio-Benjamin asked: “Why must it be blue though?” – at which all the councillors burst out laughing. The change in the municipality’s branding could have huge financial implications as its buildings, vehicles and marketing material will have to change.

But Kouga mayor Elza van Lingen downplayed the financial cost, saying it would be phased in.

“We anticipate that we will be able to replace the existing branding at minimal additional cost.

“We will continue using our existing stationery until it is necessary to order more.”

She said the existing logo on the municipal infrastructure was faded: “Our vehicles, buildings and other outdoor signage are in a poor condition and would have had to be replaced regardless of the branding change.

“We will be taking a phased approach to minimise the financial implication,” Van Lingen said yesterday.

The Kouga municipality includes Jeffreys Bay, Humansdorp, Hankey, Patensie, St Francis Bay, Cape St Francis, Oyster Bay, Loerie and Thornhill.