Did the ANC try to keep an unwelcome Present under wraps?
If Joburg's mayor could find out about the arrest and Present’s ANC connection, how could the ANC itself not be aware of the matter?
Picture for illustration. The scene of an attempted cash in transit robbery on Atlas Road in Boksburg, 5 July 2018. One of the suspects was shot dead and a guard injured during the shootout. This robbery attempt took place exactly one block away from a recent CIT robbery in which two cash vans were blown up and robbed. Picture: Neil McCartney
There are some curious aspects to the case of Errol Velile Present, the ANC Luthuli House staffer who was arrested for alleged involvement in a cash-in-transit heist.
Firstly, the arrest was brought to light by one of the ANC’s political opponents – the Democratic Alliance mayor of Joburg, Herman Mashaba.
If he could find out about the arrest and Present’s ANC connection, how could the ANC itself not be aware of the matter?
Was the organisation trying, initially at least, to cover up wrongdoing in its ranks?
Secondly, the almost indecent haste with which the ANC fired Present – within hours of Mashaba going public about the arrest – strongly suggests that the party flouted its own labour relations legislation.
How could the man possibly have been disciplined in a legally correct way in such a short time?
That seems to indicate a disdain for due process from the organisation which is running the country. That is worrying indeed.
South Africans need to remember that everyone is innocent until proven guilty.
Moreover, it is curious that the ANC did not act with such alacrity when others within its ranks were accused, or even convicted, of criminal behaviour.
Clearly, when it comes to the ANC, not all are equal.
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