Johannesburg — THE Constitutional Court yesterday again heard argument on the vexed issue of amending the constitution to keep the Matatiele municipality in the Eastern Cape instead of KwaZulu-Natal.

The main issue was whether there had been proper consultation with the Matatiele community.

A coalition of Matatiele-Maluti-based organisations questioned the KwaZulu-Natal legislature's consultation process, saying residents should have been consulted as a "discrete group", and not together with others who "watered down" their voices.

They also argued that this process was a "sham" because African National Congress members of the legislature had been told how to vote by the national government. But this was contested by the national and provincial executives and legislatures, who argued there were legitimate reasons for the decision, including that it would result in a fairer distribution of money for both provinces.

They said there had been extensive consultation and most of the evidence "militated against" the idea that it was a sham.