A critical analysis of the process of transformation of the city planning function in the City of Tshwane Metropolitan Municipality

Abstract

The study is a participant observer study of the transformation of the city planning function of the City of Tshwane Metropolitan Municipality (CTMM) from 5 December 2000 to 30 June 2002. The study is rendered in the form of a narrative told in the first person. The focus of the story is on how power and the aspiration to power influenced the actions of the people in the employ of the municipality and the relations between them during the study period. In this regard the story draws heavily on the work of Bent Flyvbjerg (1998, 2001). A number of recurring themes or golden threads are identified and highlighted through the narrative. These threads are analysed in more detail in the final chapter of the study. They are: -- The influence of power and the prevalence of different types of power; -- The role played by communication during the transformation; -- The lack of regard for people that characterised the process; and -- The inherent resistance to change displayed by the organization. The study unlocks opportunities for further study. It could form the basis of a comparative study with other cases of organizational change, particularly those related to restructuring in the other South African metropolitan municipalities. Furthermore, the struggle for recognition of the City Planning function within the new Tshwane organizational structure could be further investigated against the backdrop of the broader search for a new role and identity for the planning profession.