Cape Town mayor Patricia de Lille is expected to announce on Wednesday afternoon whether she will stick to the letter of resignation she sent to DA leader Mmusi Maimane on August 4.
In her letter‚ De Lille said: “I write to advise that I have made a decision to resign as mayor of the City of Cape Town effective from 31 October 2018.”
But the mayor remonstrated with council speaker Dirk Smit on Tuesday for allegedly telling journalists she had resigned and that a special council meeting would be held to elect former community safety MEC Dan Plato as mayor.
She tweeted a screen-grab of a text message she had sent to Smit which said: “Speaker‚ why are you lying to journalists? I never sent you a letter today addressed to you.”
She then tweeted a copy of her letter to Maimane‚ saying: “This was my resignation letter addressed to Mmusi. See the date? It’s not my formal resignation letter to the Speaker. The Speaker is lying.”
Uncertainty about De Lille’s resignation grew after law firm Bowman Gilfillan‚ which conducted a 10-month investigation centred on the Cape Town transport authority‚ recommended that De Lille be reported to the police for allegedly attempting to prevent former city manager Achmat Ebrahim fulfilling his legal duty to tell the council about allegations of misconduct against transport commissioner Melissa Whitehead.
The Bowmans report also recommended that Brett Herron‚ the mayoral committee member for transport‚ be reported to the police.
Smit said on Tuesday: “I have today‚ 30 October 2018‚ as Speaker of the City of Cape Town‚ formally laid criminal charges at the South African Police Services (SAPS) in Cape Town Central‚ Buitenkant Street‚ against Alderman Patricia de Lille and Councillor Brett Herron‚ in accordance with council’s resolution taken on the Bowmans reports‚ that these matters be reported to SAPS.
“The law must now follow its course on these matters accordingly and the SAPS will receive our full support while conducting their investigation.”
Will she or won't she? De Lille to reveal all on Wednesday afternoon
Image: File
Cape Town mayor Patricia de Lille is expected to announce on Wednesday afternoon whether she will stick to the letter of resignation she sent to DA leader Mmusi Maimane on August 4.
In her letter‚ De Lille said: “I write to advise that I have made a decision to resign as mayor of the City of Cape Town effective from 31 October 2018.”
But the mayor remonstrated with council speaker Dirk Smit on Tuesday for allegedly telling journalists she had resigned and that a special council meeting would be held to elect former community safety MEC Dan Plato as mayor.
She tweeted a screen-grab of a text message she had sent to Smit which said: “Speaker‚ why are you lying to journalists? I never sent you a letter today addressed to you.”
She then tweeted a copy of her letter to Maimane‚ saying: “This was my resignation letter addressed to Mmusi. See the date? It’s not my formal resignation letter to the Speaker. The Speaker is lying.”
Uncertainty about De Lille’s resignation grew after law firm Bowman Gilfillan‚ which conducted a 10-month investigation centred on the Cape Town transport authority‚ recommended that De Lille be reported to the police for allegedly attempting to prevent former city manager Achmat Ebrahim fulfilling his legal duty to tell the council about allegations of misconduct against transport commissioner Melissa Whitehead.
The Bowmans report also recommended that Brett Herron‚ the mayoral committee member for transport‚ be reported to the police.
Smit said on Tuesday: “I have today‚ 30 October 2018‚ as Speaker of the City of Cape Town‚ formally laid criminal charges at the South African Police Services (SAPS) in Cape Town Central‚ Buitenkant Street‚ against Alderman Patricia de Lille and Councillor Brett Herron‚ in accordance with council’s resolution taken on the Bowmans reports‚ that these matters be reported to SAPS.
“The law must now follow its course on these matters accordingly and the SAPS will receive our full support while conducting their investigation.”
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