Cape Town – City Transport head Melissa
Whitehead has resigned, alleging
she was subjected to “unfathomable
victimisation and bullying” by the
City’s leadership and management.
“This has been aggravated by an accompanying media campaign, by the same City leadership, intended to discredit me. The City’s leadership has worked relentlessly to paint me as corrupt.
"I am currently suing the deputy mayor for defamation,” she said in a statement yesterday.
Whitehead tendered her resignation after being found guilty in a disciplinary hearing, said the City.
The City’s acting media manager, Jyothi Naidoo, said: “Ms Whitehead submitted her resignation to the City manager with immediate effect, subsequent to this verdict being delivered.
“Ms Whitehead was also facing another, unrelated disciplinary
hearing that related to a tender for
electric buses.
“The City will now proceed to declare a vacancy for the position of executive director: transport, to the council.”
Whitehead has been on suspension since last year after allegations of improper conduct, most of which were contained in the investigation report of law firm Bowmans.
Her resignation came weeks after her lawyers wrote a letter to the City demanding it rescind the report into misconduct against her, to which the city responded that it was prepared to go to court.
Whitehead said the chairperson of the disciplinary hearing, that lasted more than a year, had exonerated her with respect to any allegation of corruption or financial misconduct.
“Furthermore, my professional integrity remains intact. I was, however, shocked to be found guilty on two charges.
“My legal team has advised me that material parts of the findings are not supported by the evidence and are wrong in law.
“They have advised me that the finding can be appealed and revised. The City clearly wants me gone. And there is no end in sight,” she said.
Whitehead said the findings that she tried to influence the Foreshore Freeway Bid Evaluation Committee, and that she treated one of the bidders unfairly were particularly “egregious”.
“Despite the advice of my legal team that I have strong prospects of success for both a review and an appeal, I have decided to walk away.”