26th of February 2018 MAYOR PATRICIA DE LIILE SETS A GOOD EXAMPLE BY PAYING HER OWN LEGAL FEES Dear supporters of this petition Thank you for your continued support. Our petition now stands at 1,429 supporters and growing each day. On Friday 16 February, Brian Joss in a letter to The Cape Argus falsely accused Mayor De Lille of winning her court battle against the Democratic Alliance at ratepayers’ expense. He also falsely accused Mayor De Lille as an “opportunistic politician” in an article entitled “Half expect De Lille to jump ship to EFF”. SHAME ON YOU BRIAN JOSS FOR SPREADING LIES ABOUT MAYOR PATRICIA DE LILLE! In response to the letter by Brian Joss on Friday 16 February: “Half expect De Lille to jump ship to EFF”, Mayor De Lille wrote the following response in the Cape Argus on the 16th of February 2018: “ I demand an apology from Mr. Joss on his seriously inaccurate statement that I won my court battle against the Democratic Alliance at ratepayers’ expense. This is a lie. Mr. Joss has not been reporting on this matter nor does he have any intricate knowledge of it. For him to state as fact that I went to court on the ratepayers’ bill is grossly misleading. I would like to inform Mr. Joss and assure ratepayers that not a cent of ratepayers’ money was used for my legal action against the DA. This was a political matter and was paid for from my own pocket. I take great exception to him stating very confidently that I won the court battle using ratepayer’s money. Furthermore, the legal team that I chose has nothing to do with politics or political parties. Advocate Dali Mpofu SC was brought on board as he was part of the legal team who argued for a secret ballot in the UDM matter for a motion of no confidence vote in former President Jacob Zuma. He was part of my legal counsel to test the same legal principle as in the UDM matter. Finally, while my history and political career is well known, the one thing I do not allow or stand for is for anyone to state their opinion as fact or to make decisions on my behalf. I reject Mr. Joss’ assertion that I am an “opportunistic politician” with the contempt it deserves. While everyone is entitled to their own opinion, they are certainly not entitled to their own facts. I have made my own decisions throughout my life and any changes in my career were done with the sole aim of being part of building a better alternative to the people of our beautiful country. I’d like to inform Mr. Joss that neither he nor anyone speaks for me. Finally, the headline: “Half expect De Lille to jump ship to EFF”. This is not based on any facts or polling and is as disingenuous as some of Mr. Joss’ comments.” * Patricia de Lille - Executive Mayor of the City of Cape Town. ** The views expressed here are not necessarily those of Independent Media. Cape Argus