[imagesource: Ayanda Ndamane / ANA Pictures]

Yesterday, Western Cape premier Alan Winde confirmed that now-suspended provincial community safety MEC Albert Fritz is facing sexual misconduct allegations.

His suspension was announced last week, although Winde was not specific at that time, saying only that Fritz was facing “serious allegations”.

Details of alleged exchanges between 62-year-old Fritz and young women who accompanied him on work trips have now come to light via The Sunday Times.

It’s said that he would “bombard” the women with requests for them to come to his room late at night:

In a bossy tone and in a thread peppered with bad language, Fritz persistently begs the woman to come to his room and urges her to make up a story for her companions about why she is leaving them. He tells her that he is going to leave the side door to his hotel room open.

At one point, the woman tells the MEC to learn to handle his “drink”.  When it becomes  clear the woman is not going to accede, Fritz tells her to “f**k off”. The woman responds by asking Fritz to move her elsewhere within his department.

At this stage, it’s alleged that Fritz warned the woman that this would be her last time coming on a trip with him.

Fritz is married and has one child.

Former DA member and now GOOD party secretary-general Brett Herron says he was approached by somebody who was working to help “a group of young victims of Fritz’s predatory sexual behaviour”.

There are alleged to be at least five victims, recruited from young DA members in the Mitchells Plain area, where Fritz was once the party’s constituent head:

Herron told the Sunday Times: “I received shocking information, including a bunch of WhatsApp messages, revealing that … Albert Fritz was using his position to take sexual advantage of vulnerable young interns and jobseekers in the department of social development.”

Herron said Fritz has been nicknamed ‘Humpty’ by the women, who allegedly chat amongst themselves about him via WhatsApp.

Winde said an independent investigation has now been launched, which will be headed by Advocate Jennifer Williams.

This via TimesLIVE:

“Following my handover of the details to the advocate, I do not foresee me having any other role, as this process is both independent and external. I will take further steps as soon as I have been furnished with the report.

“I hope that this will be within 14 days, but the investigator must be allowed the space and the time to ensure an independent, thorough and fair process,” Winde said in a statement on Sunday.

The whole saga is a story we have depressingly heard countless times before.

What’s so alarming is that the man at the centre of it, the Western Cape’s very own community safety MEC, is tasked with (among other things) the safety of girls and young women and tackling gender-based violence.

[sources:sundaytimes&timeslive]