The DA is experiencing another melt-down in the Cape Town council with the resignation of five DA councillors including chief whip Shaun August.
This came at Mayor Patricia de Lille's farewell speech to council on Thursday October 25. In a deal with the DA, she is to resign on October 31.
This came at Mayor Patricia de Lille's farewell speech to council on Thursday October 25. In a deal with the DA, she is to resign on October 31.
But the latest Bowman Gilfillian report, leaked to the media, has fingered her for not reporting irregular spending to council and other matters. The report recommended criminal charges be laid against her. (Note this advice is incorrect. Irregular spending and/or not reporting it is not a criminal offence unless it involves criminal conduct.) The deal that will see her leave is now in question because it was predicated on withdrawing disciplinary charges and not pursuing related matters.
The disciplinary charges against and criminal charges based on businessman Anthony Faul's affidavit were suspect and thin. The National Prosecutions Authority dismissed the criminal charges. De Lille won two high court battles against the DA relating to the disciplinary process, and a case was set down for November to hear the merits of the disciplinary charge sheet, which was based on Bowman's first report. The deal rendered the charges moot. And now the second Bowman report, 2,000 pages of it.
Then DA leader Helen Zille appointed De Lille despite De Lille's party, the Independent Party (ID), been a one-percent party (1.73% in 2004's national elections); she had no ideology in common with the DA and was a problematic politician and person: De Lille was the token black/"coloured", Zille's/DA's affirmative action/quota candidate needed to get the city's predominantly black and "coloured" vote.
Zille did the same appointing inexperienced Mamphela Ramphele and Mmusi Maimane, eyeing national elections and black ssupport. I agree with De Lille and the councillors who resigned this week who complained the DA needs black and coloured councillors only to drum up support, but whites stay at the office as strategists. Zille and the DA created the problem but when it's thrown back in their faces, they and their supporters deny it. Hypocrites.
Zille is the serial blunderer who lacked political nous and could see only in terms of of race and abandoned the DA's values taking De Lille and absorbing the ID, a party that to its left. To her army of (white) supporters, Zille can't be criticised because she's white too and they identify with her along racial and class lines: whites and a "white" party can never make mistakes and are never corrupt and incompetent. This is an unrealistic attitude. After all, this is South Africa.
Of course, De Lille didn't help herself. She wasn't the worst Cape Town mayor, about the same as Zille in terms of work ethic. But her personal and management style was/is problematic: combative; insulting critics among citizens (insulting political opponents is expected); self-pitying and using the race and gender card when she chose; being to close to developers and their agenda (which is a DA agenda so she et al can't complain about that now) and for her, council and DA mismanaging the water crisis.
The disciplinary charges against and criminal charges based on businessman Anthony Faul's affidavit were suspect and thin. The National Prosecutions Authority dismissed the criminal charges. De Lille won two high court battles against the DA relating to the disciplinary process, and a case was set down for November to hear the merits of the disciplinary charge sheet, which was based on Bowman's first report. The deal rendered the charges moot. And now the second Bowman report, 2,000 pages of it.
Then DA leader Helen Zille appointed De Lille despite De Lille's party, the Independent Party (ID), been a one-percent party (1.73% in 2004's national elections); she had no ideology in common with the DA and was a problematic politician and person: De Lille was the token black/"coloured", Zille's/DA's affirmative action/quota candidate needed to get the city's predominantly black and "coloured" vote.
Zille did the same appointing inexperienced Mamphela Ramphele and Mmusi Maimane, eyeing national elections and black ssupport. I agree with De Lille and the councillors who resigned this week who complained the DA needs black and coloured councillors only to drum up support, but whites stay at the office as strategists. Zille and the DA created the problem but when it's thrown back in their faces, they and their supporters deny it. Hypocrites.
Zille is the serial blunderer who lacked political nous and could see only in terms of of race and abandoned the DA's values taking De Lille and absorbing the ID, a party that to its left. To her army of (white) supporters, Zille can't be criticised because she's white too and they identify with her along racial and class lines: whites and a "white" party can never make mistakes and are never corrupt and incompetent. This is an unrealistic attitude. After all, this is South Africa.
Of course, De Lille didn't help herself. She wasn't the worst Cape Town mayor, about the same as Zille in terms of work ethic. But her personal and management style was/is problematic: combative; insulting critics among citizens (insulting political opponents is expected); self-pitying and using the race and gender card when she chose; being to close to developers and their agenda (which is a DA agenda so she et al can't complain about that now) and for her, council and DA mismanaging the water crisis.
I don't believe her eviction as mayor was about race, but her becoming too powerful and receiving too much support in the city council's DA caucus for the DA's liking, a fact that was evident when she survived the first motion of no confidence against her.
But if we compare how the DA treated Zille's gaffes, e.g., the colonialism tweet that led to Maimane repudiating her on national radio, with kid gloves, then race has been an indirect factor.
De Lille's critics have justification concerning her factual shortcomings, but among the presumably white majority commentators on media like PoliticsWeb and Business Day, there's an antipathy that goes beyond her being a poor manager and politician, an accusation that can be applied to other DA politicians like Ian Neilson who couldn't answer one question about the water crisis and Athol Trollip who lost Port Elizabeth for the DA (but he keeps his DA job like when Nomaindia Mfeketo lost Cape Town for the ANC).
The DA and its supporters are reluctant to address and willing to overlook the DA's appalling conduct and believe every gossip, alternative facts and fake news they tell the public. And there De Lille and the other councillors who resigned yesterday might have a point.
But if we compare how the DA treated Zille's gaffes, e.g., the colonialism tweet that led to Maimane repudiating her on national radio, with kid gloves, then race has been an indirect factor.
De Lille's critics have justification concerning her factual shortcomings, but among the presumably white majority commentators on media like PoliticsWeb and Business Day, there's an antipathy that goes beyond her being a poor manager and politician, an accusation that can be applied to other DA politicians like Ian Neilson who couldn't answer one question about the water crisis and Athol Trollip who lost Port Elizabeth for the DA (but he keeps his DA job like when Nomaindia Mfeketo lost Cape Town for the ANC).
The DA and its supporters are reluctant to address and willing to overlook the DA's appalling conduct and believe every gossip, alternative facts and fake news they tell the public. And there De Lille and the other councillors who resigned yesterday might have a point.
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