South Africa

Death of a homeless man haunts the ANC in Madibeng Local Municipality

A senior ANC member in the Madibeng Local Municipality is in hot water for allegedly running over a homeless man with her car earlier this week.

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The ANC member who holds a significant position in the mayoral committee was allegedly on her way to a political meeting when the accident happened. The homeless man who has been identified was confirmed dead on the scene.  

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It is believed that the homeless man was trying to cross the road when he was allegedly hit by the mayoral committee member’s Nissan Magnite.

Drive to a political meeting becomes deadly

It appears that the regional leader has not been charged and leading opposition parties in the council demand accountability over the matter.

EFF caucus leader in the Madibeng municipal council, Stan Komape, said the EFF managed to trace the family of the homeless man. He said the party would visit the family on Thursday morning.

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“We have met with the police and we are demanding answers about why this person is not charged,” Komape said.

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Sources close to the matter said the situation has created a nightmare for the ANC in the region. The accident allegedly happened on Monday morning in the town of Brits.

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Municipality and ANC awaiting full report

In response to The Citizen‘s questions regarding the incident, mayor’s spokesperson Freddy Kotsokwane said: “There is no formal report before the executive mayor tabling allegations that you are referring to and as I have said in my previous email the matter is before law enforcement agencies. As such, in the interest of justice, the executive mayor has afforded law enforcement space to investigate and deal with the matter.”

Kotsokwane said once police investigations are finalised, the municipality will be in a position to communicate more information on the matter.

“Once there are developments in that regard, the mayor will respond based on the outcome of the investigation. Remember the law dictates on presumption of innocent until proven otherwise by a court of law,” he said.

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Thabo Molamu, ANC Bojanala spokesperson, said the party would be in a position to comment once a full report has been received.

“We have not yet received a report on the matter, and we shall indeed request to be provided with a full report on the said incident. We would also be careful not to interfere with and/or contradict investigations if the matter has been reported to the Saps,” Molamu said.

Police in Brits said they couldn’t comment on the matter. The Citizen supplied a case number, 63/03/2024, for the matter but was instead referred to the North West police spokesperson for comment.

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This article will be updated as soon as comment from the North West police spokesperson is received.

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By Itumeleng Mafisa