PORT ELIZABETH - DA COUNCILLOR FOUND GUILTY OF MISUSING MONEY FROM HELENVALE FUND

A Nelson Mandela Bay DA councillor accused of allegedly misusing money from a discretionary
fund has been found guilty by the party’s disciplinary panel.

In a statement, the Democratic Alliance (DA) said the panel recommended that Nico du Plessis be stripped of all party offices for a period of 18 months.

He had been accused of fraudulently using money from the Helenvale Fund last year.

The DA said the hearing into the alleged misconduct was concluded on Monday at the DA’s provincial offices in Port Elizabeth.

“Du Plessis pleaded guilty to the charges relating to improperly sourcing funding for ward projects from the Councillor’s Discretionary Fund by failing to follow proper procedure,” the statement said.

The DA said Du Plessis did not gain from this failure and the monies reached the intended recipients.

“He pleaded not guilty to the charge of bringing the good name of the Party into disrepute, or harming the reputation of the Party, or acting in a manner that is unreasonable and detrimental to internal co-operation within the Party.”

He was, however, found guilty of maligning the reputation of the Democratic Alliance.

The DA said the sanction recommended by the panel has to be considered by its Provincial Executive Committee in the next two weeks.