Reflect on way forward with De Lille
CAPE Town’s water crisis has really thrown a curved ball at the DA, and exposed the fault lines in what has been touted “the best run Metro” in the country. The handling of this crisis has been an unmitigated disaster for the DA, and they must be looking towards the 2021 local government elections with some anxiety.
As Executive Mayor, Patricia de Lille was required to handle the water crisis, the first of its kind in more than 100 years. While there are certainly aspects that could have been handled differently, the advocacy about the impending crisis could not be faulted.
The truth of the matter is that the non-compliant citizenry, 60% of them, shot themselves in the foot, and merrily adopted the attitude that saving water is my neighbour’s responsibility, not mine. With hindsight being the most exact science, the critics are now raging, and it appears that the DA national leadership is looking for a fall guy, or girl in this case.
Accusations, allegations, untested “evidence” by shady characters, rumour-mongering and other dubious strategies are swirling around our embattled mayor.
First the ANC proposed a vote of no confidence, then withdrew it, the DA caucus voted 84 to 54 that it had lost confidence in the mayor, and promptly proceeded to institute its own vote of no confidence in her. And then came the shock! Despite dominating the City Council with a twothirds majority, the DA suffered the acute embarrassment of not being able to muster a simple majority in the vote.
DA leader Mmusi Maimane was furious about this humiliation, and blustered in the media about De Lille holding office without a mandate. The truth, however, is the fact that a sizeable chunk of DA councillors voted against their own party’s proposal, resulting in creating an awkward dilemma for the party. For Maimane now to pontificate about mandates doesn’t speak to the reality that his party did not do its strategic planning properly, for 84 caucus members is a far cry from a majority in council. I remember the mirth from the opposition about former president Jacob Zuma’s struggling with reading out six-digit numbers, but it appears that the DA is not good at numbers either.
The DA needs to reflect deeply at how it handles the Patricia de Lille saga going forward. She has huge credibility capital in a sizeable section of the people on the Cape Flats and beyond, and estranging this bloc of voters could be fatal for the next elections in 15 months’ time.