Cape Town - Top City of Cape Town official Melissa Whitehead has officially been suspended.
Whitehead, the City’s transport commissioner, has been suspended for allegedly covering up irregularities in which mayor Patricia de Lille is implicated.
Council members met for a special sitting on Friday to discuss, among other things, allegations of fraud and tender irregularities levelled against Whitehead and De Lille, as well as the proposed drought and punitive traffis.
Xolani Sotashe, ANC leader in the city council, dropped the information when debating on the water crisis.
“Really we need to act now. We need act the same way we have acted on the suspension of Melissa Whitehead,” he said in council.
After considering an internal report, the full Cape Town city council decided that Whitehead and City manager Achmat Ebrahim be charged.
Ebrahim has since resigned.
Whitehead is facing four misconduct charges involving tenders for buses, the loss of bus fares and nepotism. MyCiTi losses were at about R43 million while Whitehead maintained it was at R33 million.