De Lille’s home guarded after security leak
THE home of Cape Town mayor Patricia de Lille was put under 24hour guard yesterday after the ANC revealed information about security upgrades at the property.
Council speaker Dirk Smit said the ANC’s reckless release of a R140 000 invoice for security barriers had jeopardised the safety of De Lille’s home in Pinelands.
“As a consequence of the actions of the ANC and others‚ I will have to deploy the city’s VIP protection services to the mayor’s house 24 hours a day‚” Smit said.
Security upgrades at De Lille’s home‚ which she shares with her husband and adult son‚ have been at the centre of a row between her and mayoral committee member JP Smith which led to their suspension from DA activities on Tuesday pending the results of a party investigation.
In a letter to DA leaders on August 20‚ Smith raised the possibility that one of the reasons for De Lille’s closure of the special investigations unit in his safety and security department was that security equipment had been installed irregularly at her home.
Yesterday, Xolani Sontashe‚ leader of the ANC opposition in the City of Cape Town‚ attempted to address the security and social services portfolio committee about De Lille’s security upgrades but was prevented from doing so by the committee’s DA chairman‚ Mzwakhe Nqavashe.
Sontashe showed reporters an invoice from Trellidor for five Clearguard security barriers – consisting of stainless steel mesh screens in aluminium frames. The invoice‚ dated June 6 and sent to the City of Cape Town‚ showed the equipment had been installed at the mayor’s residence.
On Monday‚ De Lille said: “Regarding renovations at my house‚ these were paid for by myself and I am prepared to make the proof of these payments made by myself known as part of the proper legal processes.”
Smit said yesterday the Cape Town mayor‚ like other political office-bearers‚ was entitled to security upgrades at her “ordinary‚ modest home which she paid for herself”.
“This is in spite of the fact that the mayor is entitled to an official residence paid for by council.
“With the council’s receipts of the security work done at the mayor’s house being made public‚ these security features have now been compromised,” he said.
“The safety upgrades were based on a risk analysis report from a special unit within the [SAPS].”