The meeting was well-attended, despite it being All Pay and the election was overseen by Councillor Arthur Knott-Craig, who acted as Presiding Officer for the election. Councillor Knott-Craig also took this opportunity to congratulate the DA members in Aberdeen for their proactive approach in addressing problems and issues and bringing these to the attention of the Council for resolution.
In her Chairperson's Report, Samantha Jankovich highlighted a number of achievements of the DA in Aberdeen, despite their having been in existence for a little over 6 months, including an undertaking by the Municipality to resolve the lighting issues in Lotusville – a long-standing problem having a direct bearing on crime in the area.
For the first time ever, the Aberdeen branch of the DA will be represented at the DA Eastern Cape Provincial Congress which will be held in Graaff-Reinet over 13 and 14 November 2009. This will provide a platform for the airing and discussion of some of the issues currently faced by the people of Aberdeen.
The new executive consists of Samantha Jankovich (re-elected as Chairperson), Chris Africa (re-elected as Vice-Chairperson), Menandy Stols (Secretary), Nikolas Jankovich (re-elected), Jane Saayman (re-elected), George Eberbach, Deodatt Beyers, Eileen Coetzee and Carolina Heyns.