De Lille ‘thrown to dogs’

VOTE: MAYOR’S RESPONSIBILITIES ON WATER DELEGATED IN COUNCIL MEETING

Western Cape leader of ANC said yesterday’s happenings signalled the demise of the DA in Cape Town.

Mayor Patricia de Lille was blindsided, publicly shunned, and “thrown to the dogs” by her own councillors in the City of Cape Town yesterday.

During a city council meeting on the proposed punitive tariff measures for water abuse, deputy mayor Ian Neilson put forward an amendment that sought to delegate all the mayor’s water crisis or drought related responsibilities.

The tariff increase was unanimously agreed to over the formerly proposed drought levy but the amendment caused much consternation in the chamber – from even De Lille herself.

Before the vote was put to councillors, De Lille said it was the first time she had heard of the attempt to relegate her powers over water affairs to another structure.

“I won’t speak to merits or demerits. There is a process in terms of the amendments of systems of delegations. Due process was not followed before this amendment came before council. I have not been consulted as executive mayor,” she said.

Despite this, of the 187 multiparty councillors present, 125 voted in favour of the amendment, 57 against and three abstained.

De Lille cast a lone figure as she left the chamber but happily danced past the seemingly supportive and singing ANC benches.

And while De Lille’s statutory powers will remain intact, the ANC said the DA had “thrown her to the dogs”.

Western Cape leader of the official opposition Xolani Sotashe couldn’t hold back his excitement as he left the sitting at what he described was a triumph for the ANC and the demise of the DA in the city.

“De Lille has been sold out by her own people. This is an institution, you can’t have a political party decide and communicate what happens in council,” he said.

On Sunday, DA national leader Mmusi Maimane said the federal executive had decided that De Lille could no longer communicate on drought issues. However, according to the rules of council, it is the prerogative of council to determine the powers of the mayor, not the executive of the party.

“It’s clear that, in majority, white people will still be in control of that party. In fact, De Lille has been sold to the dogs and you can see the writing is on the wall. De Lille is history; now we can’t talk about her as a mayor.

“This now is not a decision of the party anymore, now it’s a decision of the council,” Sotashe said.

The approved punitive measures will come into effect on February 1.

Capetonians will be limited to 50 litres water consumption per day and will be heavily fined if they use more.