Jean-Pierre "JP" Smith is a South African politician and

Cape Town Cape Town ( af, Kaapstad; , xh, iKapa) is one of South Africa's three capital cities, serving as the seat of the Parliament of South Africa. It is the legislative capital of the country, the oldest city in the country, and the second largest ...

city councillor for Subcouncil 15, Ward 54. An area that includes

Sea Point Sea Point (Afrikaans: ''Seepunt'') is one of Cape Town's most affluent and densely populated suburbs, situated between Signal Hill and the Atlantic Ocean, a few kilometres to the west of Cape Town's Central Business District (CBD). Moving from ...

, Green Point, and

Mouille Point Mouille Point ("Mu-lee") is an affluent suburb of Cape Town, situated between the Victoria & Alfred Waterfront, Victoria and Alfred Waterfront and Granger Bay to the east, Green Point, Cape Town, Green Point to the south and the Atlantic Ocean to t ...

. He is a member of Democratic Alliance and prior to the 2014 general elections he was tipped of as the party's candidate to lead the City's Housing portfolio. Since 2009 he is the mayoral committee member responsible for safety and security in the Democratic Alliance-led Cape Town city council.

Political career

Smith first started his career in politics as ward councillor for Ward 54 where one of his first issues was campaigning to demolish the wall around

Graaff's Pool Graaff's Pool is a public bathing area, tidal pool and notable landmark in the Cape Town neighbourhood of Sea Point, South Africa. The pool was built by Pieter Marais in 1910. Marais, a businessman in the wine trade, built the pool for his para ...

in Sea Point. In 2009 he became the head of the Security Portfolio for the City of Cape Town and led an aggressive campaign against crime and anti-social behaviour in Sea Point using a

Broken Windows Broken may refer to: Literature * ''Broken'' (Armstrong novel), a 2006 novel by Kelley Armstrong in the ''Women of the Otherworld'' series * ''Broken'' (Slaughter novel), a 2010 novel by Karin Slaughter Music Albums * ''Broken (And Oth ...

strategy. Crime had been increasing in the area throughout the 1990s but after the adoption of this approach the area saw a decline in criminal activity throughout the 2000s. In 2012 Smith was gagged along with other members of the mayoral committee by mayor

Patricia De Lille Patricia de Lille (née Lindt; born 17 February 1951) is a South African politician who is the current Minister of Public Works and Infrastructure and leader of the political party Good. She was previously Mayor of Cape Town from 2011 to 2018, ...

for making comments rejecting plans to allow the

Cape Town Stadium The Cape Town Stadium ( af, Kaapstad-stadion; xh, Inkundla yezemidlalo yaseKapa) is an association football (soccer) and rugby union stadium in Cape Town, South Africa, that was built for the 2010 FIFA World Cup. During the planning stage, it wa ...

to be converted in an attempt to make it financially viable. The Cape Town Stadium is situated in his constituency where it has drawn criticism from local residences.

Safety and security portfolio

Since 2009 Smith is the mayoral committee member responsible for safety and security for the City of Cape Town. He spearheaded the adoption and implementation of two important by-laws. The Cape Liquor Law (2013-2014) regulating trading hours and a controversial dog by-law from 2010 to 2012. He also oversaw the expansion of the city's Metropolitan Police Force whilst fighting attempts by national government to assimilate it into the South African Police Service. Smith also introduced a number of specialised units within the Metropolitan Police to deal with land invasions, road offences, drugs and problem buildings.

Interim DA Deputy Provincial Leader

On 7 May 2022, Smith was elected as the new interim deputy provincial leader of the DA in the Western Cape. He defeated DA Member of the Provincial Parliament Wendy Philander, Breede Valley mayor

Antoinette Steyn Antoinette is a given name, that is a diminutive feminine form of Antoine and Antonia (from Latin ''Antonius''). People with the name include: Nobles * Antoinette de Maignelais, Baroness of Villequier by marriage (1434–1474), mistress of C ...

and Breede Valley councillor Megann Goedeman.

References

External links

JP Smith: Councillor Details
{{DEFAULTSORT:Smith, JP Living people Democratic Alliance (South Africa) politicians 1971 births