De Lille’s city plans
CAPE Town mayor Patricia De Lille has resigned her position as DA provincial leader – a move she says will allow her to concentrate on her plan to tackle the legacy of apartheid spatial planning in Cape Town.
The DA had increased its support in the metro in last year’s local government elections and now enjoys a two-thirds majority. That result, De Lille says, was a clear endorsement of the party’s work in the Mother City.
What it also meant was De Lille had been given a free hand to take service delivery in the metro to the next level. She has already started this with her plan to split the city into four areas to ensure better and efficient delivery of services, and an undertaking to ensure equity in the services provided in poor communities and affluent suburbs. There can be no arguing this is long overdue.
The City’s Organisational Development and Transformation Plan (ODTP) is not a small task and will require De Lille to apply a hands-on approach. The last thing the mayor needs is the distraction accompanying the role of a party’s provincial leader.
De Lille says this much in her letter of resignation to DA leader Mmusi Maimane. “Taking Cape Town to the next level of government is an exciting prospect, but one that will take all of my time,” she wrote.
Now that she has only the city to focus on, it is hoped the mayor accelerates the ODTP. What we’ve witnessed thus far is the intention to address some of the problems apartheid created. Intentions mean nothing if not put into action. Cape Town’s poor and marginalised are waiting to see what tangible differences the plan brings them and what improvements there are in the services they receive.
Yes, some people may be surprised, even shocked, that the mayor no longer wants to hold the position of DA provincial leader. But the needs of the city’s disadvantaged communities are more important than what the DA does about the vacancy left as a result of De Lille’s resignation. The party would do well to keep in mind that the majority of its supporters come from these communities.