De Lille wants a chance to clear her name
14 January 2018
Cape Town – All Cape Town Mayor Patricia de Lille wants, is an opportunity to clear her name.
The DA Federal Executive Council (FedEx) on Sunday evening announced that it resolved to institute charges of alleged misconduct against De Lille with its Federal Legal Council (FLC).
Furthermore, she will not be suspended as mayor, and the party will not support a motion of no confidence against her.
She will, however, no longer be charged with dealing with the City of Cape Town's response to the water crises. This will now be handled by her deputy, Ian Neilson, and mayoral committee member for water, sanitation and waste services Xanthea Limberg.
Speaking to eNCA shortly after DA leader Mmusi Maimane's announcement, De Lille said she noted the FedEx's resolutions did not include the demand for her resignation or support of a motion of no confidence against her.
"I welcome the fact that the DA has taken a formal decision to charge me.
"It is disappointing that it took them so long and I'm also disappointed that they are already stripping me of my powers which they aren't allowed to do in terms of my statutory duties before the disciplinary process has been concluded," she told the broadcaster.
"I've repeatedly stated that all I was asking for was a fair chance to clear my name from the aspersions, the allegations of corruption, nothing was said about corruption.
"I've dedicated my life to fighting corruption as history will show, and therefore I welcome that corruption charges or allegations are no longer being mentioned by the DA. I feel that I'm finally being granted the opportunity to give my side of the story and I look forward to defending myself and working together with the Federal Legal Commission to get the proceedings over as soon as possible, which is central to a tenet of our hard-won democracy."
Factual errors
Chairperson of the DA Federal Council James Selfe said that the FLC is expected to finish its work within 60 days.
De Lille had earlier criticised a report by the firm Bowman Gilfillan Attorneys, which was commissioned to investigate whether any grounds existed for disciplinary action to be taken against some of the city's senior managers, saying it contained factual errors.
DA leader Mmusi Maimane conceded that the report contained some errors, and said the city council would deal with the report, including its errors.
The Bowman Gilfillan report did not give rise to the charges against De Lille.
However, Maimane said the FedEx "could not ignore the fact that for the first time in Cape Town's history, a Council-mandated independent investigation took the view that the sitting Mayor had demonstrated behavior and actions which, on the basis of extensive evidence before them (including the Mayor's own representations), prima facie constituted gross misconduct, gross dereliction of duty, and conduct that amounted to deceiving Council."
The charges stem from a report compiled by a sub-committee led by DA chief whip John Steenhuisen, which examined the growing divisions in the City of Cape Town DA caucus under De Lille's leadership, as well as a growing list of substantive complaints about the nature and style of her leadership.
