DA Denies Charging Cape Town Mayor De Lille for Attending EFF Memorial Service

The DA party has denied reports that the party has taken a decision to charge Cape Town Mayor, Patricia De Lille, over her attendance of the EFF’s Memorial Service in honour of Mama Winnie Madikizela-Mandela.

“These reports are simply untrue,” said Refiloe Nt’sekhe, DA National Spokesperson, in a media statement Thursday.

De Lille’s attendance at the memorial yesterday is a matter between her and the EFF leadership, and not the DA, said Nt’sekhe.

“A courtesy call to alert the DA about her attendance would have been welcomed.

“As the DA, we received an official invitation from the EFF leadership and the Party sent the DA’s Free State Provincial Leader, Patricia Kopane, to commemorate Mama Winnie’s life and to pass on our condolences.

“The DA regularly receives invitations from other political parties to address events or rallies and this is not in any way unusual. However, we do ask that the individual concerned informs the Party leadership,” said the statement.

The DA said it refuses to be drawn into mud-slinging in the name of Madikizela-Mandela.

“It is simply inappropriate. The DA leader will be paying his last respects at the official funeral this coming weekend as he had done last week during his visit to the family home,” said the DA.

I visited Mama Winnie’s old home in Brandfort. This place holds so many sad memories. It’s a great pity that it wasn’t turned into a museum while she was alive so that she could give a first hand account of what happened here at the hands of the apartheid government. pic.twitter.com/gedambHNmc

— Patricia de Lille (@PatriciaDeLille) April 11, 2018

Say her name. Say it
She's Mayor of Cape Town Patricia De Lille.
You just angry she attended memorial service of her friend along side EFF pic.twitter.com/p32eYVwAGZ

— Nkwe Mashamaite (@NkweMashamaite) April 12, 2018