De Lille slams DA’s ‘fraudulent’ attempt to oust her
CAPE Town mayor Patricia de Lille’s counsel has accused the DA of being so desperate to remove her from her position that it resorted to fraudulent means.
Advocate Dali Mpofu told a full bench of the High Court in Cape Town yesterday that the party had tried to get rid of her through illegal means and when it failed‚ it concocted an “even more unlawful” alternative to fasttrack the axing.
De Lille is challenging the constitutionality of the DA’s cession clause that the party relied on to fire her last month.
Her assertion an interview with radio host Eusebius McKaiser that she would resign after clearing her name is what cost her her party membership.
“What they want to do is to remove her as mayor‚” said Mpofu. “They don’t care if she is a [DA] member or not. They have gone to an illegal subterfuge. This is just a smoke screen put before the court. I am sure there are worse members they are tolerating.
“All we are saying is that they have chosen an illegal route.
“They need to canvass council members and convince those members to vote in favour of the vote of no confidence.”
Mpofu said the DA was aware that a vote of no confidence in De Lille might not succeed as they knew she enjoyed majority support in council.
“Even if they go back to council‚ they are going to fail‚” Mpofu said.
De Lille survived a vote of no confidence brought by the DA on February 15 by one vote. The party stripped De Lille of her executive powers last week‚ rendering her a ceremonial mayor.
Mpofu also accused the DA of double standards. He said other DA members‚ including party leader Mmusi Maimane‚ DA MP Phumzile van Damme and Tshwane mayor Solly Msimang‚ had publicly uttered similar statements.
Mpofu said the DA’s argument was that the statements were “conditional”.
“With one side of the mouth they say conditionality is a defence and on [the other] they say it is not‚” said Mpofu. “Ms De Lille took them at their word and laid a complaint and nothing has been done since.” —