De Lille accuses former right-hand man of 'criminal lies'

The war raging in the top echelons of the City of Cape Town attracted another 5‚477 words on Wednesday.

Mayor Patricia de Lille responded to a 42-page affidavit accusing her of ethical and legal shortcomings with a 22-page statement accusing its author of lying about her.

De Lille’s statement is the latest salvo in a conflict that has also embroiled city manager Achmat Ebrahim‚ transport commissioner Melissa Whitehead and the executive director of the department of the mayor‚ Craig Kesson.

The welter of accusations — including a threat of criminal action against Kesson — also coincide with a conflict between De Lille and mayoral committee member JP Smith which has led to a DA inquiry.

Kesson‚ the mayor’s right-hand man and co-author with De Lille of a book published in September — View From City Hall: Reflections on Governing Cape Town — detonated a bombshell under the mayor with an affidavit on November 9 which he signed “under the provisions and protections afforded by the Protected Disclosures Act”.

In it‚ he accused De Lille of issuing instructions to make allegations of financial misconduct against Ebrahim and Whitehead “go away”.

De Lille’s statement on Wednesday said senior counsel had advised her that Kesson’s “disclosure of false information purportedly under the legislation which he invokes is a criminal offence”.

His affidavit was “either a politically motivated attempt to embarrass me or an attempt to contrive protection as a supposed whistleblower”‚ she said‚ adding: “His accusations against me are untrue. I have been notified that other individuals aggrieved by Mr Kesson’s false affidavit have independently reported the matter to the statutorily designated authority.”

De Lille went out of her way in her statement to defend Ebrahim and Whitehead. The city manager‚ she said‚ “is a very senior and widely respected public servant. He has an unblemished career of 40 years in the city.”

Whitehead‚ meanwhile‚ ‘“has had her long career recently crowned by receiving the 2017 International Transport Strategy Award ... [which] celebrates the city’s response to eradicate apartheid spatial planning”.

Kesson had been an executive director for just over a year and emerged from his probation period a few months ago. Since then‚ “he has expressed suspicions against many other city officials‚ politicians and departments. The chief financial officer‚ Mr Kevin Jacoby‚ referred to Mr Kesson’s ‘temperament’ and objected to his autocratic approach.”

De Lille admitted that she had planned to recommend the suspensions of Kesson‚ Ebrahim and Whitehead pending investigations into them.

“I thought that the water crisis justified the most expeditious investigation‚ which would be facilitated by suspension‚” she says. In the event‚ legal advice was that only Kesson should be suspended.

Kesson‚ Ebrahim and Whitehead have until the close of business on Wednesday to argue against possible suspension amid allegations of misconduct and possible tender irregularities.

The allegations were raised in an extraordinary council meeting last week at which Kesson’s affidavit was tabled.

The City of Cape Town council will meet on Tuesday December 5 to decide whether to suspend the officials pending an investigation‚ said speaker Dirk Smit.