Pretoria - Police Minister Bheki Cele was informed about shootings that claimed people’s lives in the Mkhondo Local Municipality in Mpumalanga more than four years ago.
This was when concerned community members confronted him about three murders in the area during protests against then mayor Vusi Motha, who is facing charges of unlawful possession of a firearm and ammunition.
Motha was arrested last week following the murder of councillor Sibonelo Ntshangase, who was gunned with two other ANC members, Sizwe Mbingo and Sandile Khumalo, near Piet Retief on January 13. Motha’s arrest followed a video in which the late Ntshangase told Mkhondo residents that should be killed, they should blame Motha.
The video went viral a few days after Ntshangase was assassinated, forcing Cele to establish a special team of investigators. These three murders occurred a little more than two months after Mkhondo PR councillor Muzi Manyathi was killed.
In the 4-year-old SABC news video, Cele gave police four days to solve the three murders that community members pinned on Motha.
“I was attacked at my home on February 16, 2019. The mayor called me and threatened to kill me,” one resident said, adding that he had opened a case with the police.
Another resident accused Motha of compiling a hit list of those vocal against corruption in the municipality. “We have a mayor who hires hitmen to kill us in Mkhondo. There is a list of people to be killed. I’m on that list. I’m on the run night and day,” he said.
Motha, who was also accused of throwing a brick at protesting community members, told the SABC he never threatened anyone. “I never called him and said I’m going to kill him,” he said.
At the time, Cele announced that he had set up a provincial task team to probe the cases. “We have arrested people. I think one person that we believe will help us going forward is in custody.”
Fast-forward to 2023, and four ANC members have been gunned down in three months, with residents accusing Motha of being the prime suspect.
However, Motha has not been charged with murder, only unlawful possession of a firearm and ammunition.
During his visit to the bereaved families last week, Cele said he knew about the names of suspects in the recent murders.
“The root cause of it is the non-arrest of the perpetrators. Some of them are really known, they have names, but police is not to come here and repeat the names.
“Maybe, the approach we used in other places where there are political killings, like KZN, is the same approach that we will be using.”
Police Ministry spokesperson Lirandzu Themba did not respond to questions about Cele’s four-day instruction for police to solve murders reported in Mkhondo four years ago.
Pretoria News