South African Capital’s Mayor to Quit After Sex Tape Scandal
Mayor of South Africa’s Capital Says He Will Resign
(Bloomberg) -- The mayor of South Africa’s Tshwane municipality, which includes the capital, Pretoria, said he will resign this month to end political wrangling over his continued presence in office.
Stevens Mokgalapa has faced pressure to quit since a leaked audio tape indicated that he allegedly disparaged officials in a conversation with a mayoral council member and engaged in a sexual act with her in the municipality’s offices. The two say the tape was tampered with.
Mokgalapa is a member of the main opposition Democratic Alliance, which wrested control of Tshwane from the ruling African National Congress in 2016 with the aid of the Economic Freedom Fighters, the third-largest party.
The DA placed Mokgalapa on leave in December as it investigated his conduct, while the EFF called for his removal. The ANC meanwhile threatened to place the city under the control of the administration of the central Gauteng province, but backed down after the DA said it would challenge the move in court.
“I wish to make clear that I have not broken any laws and am confident that I would emerge positively from any assessment of my conduct,” Mokgalapa said in an emailed statement. “But in the end, I have concluded that it is best for the city if I stand down as mayor.”
The scandal has been yet another blow for the DA, which lost support in national elections last year, and has since seen its mayor of Johannesburg, Herman Mashaba, and its leader, Mmusi Maimane, quit the party.
The DA’s Gauteng leader John Moodley thanked Mokgalapa for his service and said the party would initiate the process of finding a replacement.
To contact the reporter on this story: Mike Cohen in Cape Town at mcohen21@bloomberg.net
To contact the editors responsible for this story: Paul Richardson at pmrichardson@bloomberg.net, Helen Nyambura, James Amott
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