Patricia De Lille is also demanding that the hearings be open to the public and the media.
The Democratic Alliance’s disciplinary hearing into Cape Town Mayor Patricia de Lille’s alleged misconduct will now have to start from scratch after a member of the disciplinary panel recused himself.
De Lille told journalists on Thursday that the hearing had been adjourned until further notice because panelist Pogisho Monchusi had withdrawn from the proceedings. Monchusi is a councillor in the North West, and was among the members of the panel who De Lille suggested may be impartial in a statement earlier this week.
“Our point of view was that he’s not a fit and proper person,” she said of his recusal on Thursday.
De Lille said that the party would provide the reasons as to why Monchusi recused himself, but DA Federal Executive chairperson James Selfe said that no reasons had been provided.
“He did not provide any further reasons, but he believed that rather than cause any further delays in the proceedings, he was rather going to withdraw,” Selfe said.
The hearing was meant to start on Thursday after a lengthy delay which saw proceedings fail to begin on Tuesday, when it was initially scheduled to proceed.
Selfe confirmed that an application was made for Monchusi to withdraw, but said that Monchusi “did not want to get involved in the matter”. His recusal now means that the party will have to find a member to replace him and the proceedings will have to begin all over again.
Selfe could not determine when the hearing will resume, but said that it is of importance to the party that this issue is quickly resolved, especially as the DA plans ahead to the 2019 national elections.
“Everybody, the party and Ms de Lille, have both stated that they want this to be over with as soon as possible. Ms de Lille wants to clear her name, the party wants to get this thing over and done with so we can get on with the business of winning votes,” he said.
“And so, we would hope that the proceedings can be wrapped up as soon as possible,” he said.
But there may yet be more delays when the hearing does finally begin. De Lille had earlier asked that another member of the panel, Sheila Camerer, a former justice minister in the apartheid regime government, be recused because of her connection to apartheid and that she has not practised in the judiciary for years.
De Lille is also demanding that the hearings be open to the public and the media, but Selfe has insisted that it is DA protocol for disciplinary hearings to be closed.