Mogalakwena mayor assaulted as she arrives for council sitting

A special council sitting at the Mogalakwena Local Municipality in Limpopo was postponed yesterday after the brutal assault of the mayor.

The council was poised to discuss issues of service delivery but the meeting could not continue as the council’s political head was assaulted by unknown assailants.

Spokesperson Samson Selokela said the mayor, Andrina Matsemela, had just parked her car and was walking to the chamber when she was attacked.

“We suspect her attackers came under the pretext that they were going to attend the sitting,” Selokela said.

“This was a well-calculated move, believed to have been orchestrated by those with a personal vendetta against her.

“The mayor sustained injuries to her body and face during the attack,” said Selokela.

A case of assault was opened.

A leader of the Mogalakwena residents’ association, Piet Pale, was gunned down a few years ago. Pale was allegedly vocal against corruption in the municipality.

The municipality also hit the headlines in 2014 after forensic auditors found former mayor Tlhalefi Mashamaite hired 30 bodyguards, costing more than R1 million, using the council’s money.

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