Cape Town - Outgoing Cape Town mayor Patricia de Lille intends to sue businessman Anthony Faul for R1 million for defamation, De Lille said on Sunday.
De Lille said she had been formally notified this week by the Directorate for Priority Crime Investigation (Hawks) that the senior public prosecutor had considered the evidence regarding the case of bribery made against her in relation to "bogus allegations by a Mr Anthony Faul", and that the decision was made not to institute a prosecution against her. The charge was accordingly withdrawn.
In early February this year, Democratic Alliance federal executive chairperson James Selfe confirmed that the party had approached police with an affidavit they had received from Faul.
"I rejected these ludicrous allegations from the onset when they appeared out of thin air in February this year. This was at the height of the time when the DA was trying everything to remove me at all costs by throwing all sorts of allegations at me hoping that something would stick," De Lille said in a statement.
"To date, I have not been found guilty of anything that I have been accused of. I have always said that the truth will always survive and that I am not afraid to subject myself to any due process to properly test the allegations against me, open to the public and the media. Once again, their attempts to discredit me and ruin my hard earned integrity have amounted to nil."
The bribery allegation dated back to events more than five years ago related to Faul's negotiations with the City of Cape Town safety and security disaster risk management department for fire retardant paint for informal settlements.
"At the time when these allegations surfaced, I stated that this was part of the grand plot to remove me. Regardless of this, I committed to co-operating openly and transparently with the SAPS [South African Police Service], which is what I have been doing for months. The staff in my office also co-operated with the Hawks fully when they were approached for interviews and statements.
"I am relieved that justice has prevailed and that I have once again been vindicated. It is proof of the vicious witchhunt which unfolded over the past year to get rid of me. I have taken an enormous amount of abuse and all the allegations which were spread far and wide by the DA has caused me great reputational harm.
"The allegations made by Faul are patently false and were a vicious attack on my good name and reputation. As such, they were defamatory in the extreme and I have instructed my lawyers to pursue a defamation case against him for R1 million," De Lille said.
* Receive IOL's top stories via WhatsApp by sending your name to 0745573535.