Councillor Lili’s expulsion not a ‘political stitch-up’
AXED ANC councillor Andile Lili’s expulsion could not have been a “political stitch-up” because at least two of his own party members supported it.
This was one of the rebuttals presented in the Western Cape High Court yesterday, the last of three days of argument in Lili’s legal challenge of his expulsion.
He was expelled from the City of Cape Town in March after a multiparty disciplinary committee found him guilty of participating in the illegal demolition of homes and of making derogatory remarks to Khayelitsha residents. Lili’s lawyers have claimed their client’s disciplinary process had been “unfair” and had been used to settle a political score.
Advocate Pete Hathorn, acting for Local Government MEC Anton Bredell, said if there had been a political stitch-up behind Lili’s expulsion, as alleged, it had been “the most curious political stitch-up I’ve ever seen”.
The disciplinary committee had come to a unanimous decision to recommend Lili’s expulsion, and on the committee had been two members of his own political party.
There had been a further five DA members and one Cope mem- ber. While Lili had denied in his court papers that there had been a unanimous decision, he hadn’t put forward any evidence to substantiate this.
Advocate Paul Farlam, acting for the city, also touched on this argument, saying that when the disciplinary committee’s recommendation had gone to council for a vote, the ANC had abstained. “To suggest it’s all a stitch-up is unfounded,” he said.
Hathorn described it as “illogical and untenable”.
Judge Andre le Grange, too, questioned Lili’s advocate, Thabani Masuku, on this point on Tuesday, saying it appeared that Lili’s own party members had “come to the conclusion to remove him”.
Yesterday, the judge asked Masuku what would happen if the ANC recalled Lili as he was a “proportional representative” – as opposed to a ward councillor – who had been put in the position of councillor at the behest of his party. He asked whether the case would be rendered moot.
Masuku acknowledged that if this happened it would become “unnecessary”. Lili could face expulsion for an unrelated issue – his role in recent sanitation protests that involved the dumping of human faeces – and is expected to appear before an ANC disciplinary committee on August 24.
Lili’s legal team is also challenging the constitutionality of a section of the Municipal Systems Act that gives the MEC for local government the power to expel councillors.
Masuku has argued that the provision violates the principle of municipal autonomy.
However, lawyers for the MEC, the city and the minister of co-operative governance have argued that municipal autonomy is not absolute and that the provincial and national spheres of government had monitory and support roles.
Judge Le Grange reserved judgment.