Cape Argus

De Lille peace pipe agreement exposes DA

- ZUKO MNDAYI SACP spokespers­on writing in his personal capacity

THE political warfare that haunted the DA has ended through a deal between mayor Patricia De Lille and the party.

To the shock of many, they smoked a peace pipe, with the mayor succumbing and announcing her resignatio­n from October 31.

The agreement raises more questions than answers – most glaringly it exposes the DA’s hypocrisy.

The alleged maladminis­tration was deliberate­ly left untested to avoid reputation­al damage with the 2019 elections approachin­g, contradict­ing the DA’s clean governance elections propaganda.

The party clearly couldn’t risk campaignin­g with the cloud of the clumsily-handled De Lille matter hanging over its head.

Sitting on the untested Bowman Gilfillan report, the DA may have struck a deal with De Lille but it has now been exposed as a party that compromise­s governance and one which hid away corruption (perceived or real) for political expediency.

The agreement doesn’t indicate an end to DA’s mudslingin­g as witnessed recently. The struggle between factions in the party – with the power still firmly in the grip of pseudo-liberals – will continue widening existing cracks in the DA caucus. The pseudo-liberals haven’t forgotten those who transgress­ed the DA’s policy by protecting the mayor from motions of no confidence. Equally this grouping is prepared to fight back. This will play itself out further leaving governance decay unattended to.

The city is yet to recover from the governance chaos caused by the DA’s palace politics and the citizens are still going to suffer.

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