It’s three months to elections and already political parties in Limpopo are seemingly at each other’s throats in one way or another. In turn the Police were in the sights of both the Democratic Alliance (DA) and Economic Freedom Fighters (EFF) in the province for alleged brutality and questionable working conditions this week.
On Monday Democratic Alliance (DA) Limpopo Premier candidate Jacques Smalle filed a complaint with the Independent Police Investigative Directorate (Ipid) in Limpopo following alleged Police brutality in Marble Hall last Wednesday after a DA councillor and activists, one seemingly accompanied by a minor child, were allegedly assaulted, wrongfully arrested for fraud and kept in custody overnight. Apparently the allegations of selling IDs on behalf of the Department of Home Affairs were lodged by EFF councillors in the town, it was learnt.
Smalle informed Polokwane Observer that the DA also intended instituting litigation against the Police, following the arrest. In a statement issued on Monday Smalle alleged that the Police have ill-treated and harassed the seven individuals before making a wrongful arrest and keeping them in custody for a night. “After this callous arrest, they went back and intimidated their children and searched their houses without any search warrant.”
Smalle explained the councillor and activists had been moving around the community to assist with speeding up the compilation of a list of names of land claimants in terms of a court process following an order obtained against the Department of Home Affairs.
The DA believed that the Police’s behaviour in the matter was totally unacceptable and the matter had to be urgently be investigated, Smalle continued stating.
Giyani DA institutes charges against ANC
On Monday a DA Councillor serving on Greater Giyani Municipal Council, Hasani Shivambu in Limpopo alerted the media in a statement that the party in town would be laying criminal charges against African National Congress (ANC) officials at deadline time after reports of alleged vandalism and removal of DA voting posters replaced with notices advertising President Cyril Ramaphosa’s presence during the scheduled provincial party elections manifesto launch in Thohoyandou this weekend.
Speaking to Polokwane Observer on the way to the Police to institute the case on Tuesday, Shivambu said he had been receiving reports since Saturday about DA posters, inviting people to vote, that were allegedly being removed in the municipal area and replaced by ANC placards while other posters were apparently being vandalised. He was adamant that the ANC was to blame as they considered the DA their biggest threat. “They will do whatever they can to frustrate us.”
“Police station from hell”
Unrelated to these events EFF Limpopo’s Provincial Command Team issued a statement about an oversight visit last week to Villa Nora Police Station in Lephalale – ‘dubbed Police station from hell’. It was reportedly established that working conditions were not conducive for humans to perform duties to the full, that the dignity of Police officials was about non-existent and almost all staff had applied for transfers to escape the situation.
“Community members have to walk 9 km through the bush to report cases. Women get raped on the way to the Police station to open case(s). Police officers and PSA (Public Servants Association of South Africa) members have to cross the Phalala River infested with crocodiles and snakes to come to work every day. There is no public transport to the Police station, making accessibility extremely difficult. The toilets have not been working since 2016 due to lack of water. Police officers and other workers at the Police station are forced to relieve themselves in the bush, highly infested with snakes which often visit them (on a daily basis) at the premises.
“Police officers are forever absent from work because of stress and depression. They are expected to service 26 villages, 200 farms, 21 schools, two clinics and also monitor the taverns around the area with only 35 police officers, 9 PSA members and one Police van. Cases take long before they can be attended to due to shortage of Police officers and Police vans. Dusty dockets are kept in a very old and dilapidated building with broken windows,” it said.
“Finally,” it was noted, “the local induna and the chief donated a piece of land to government about five years ago for the construction of a new Police station next to Phahladira shopping complex. The government promised to build a new Police station but to date nothing happened.”
Donald Selamole-la on behalf of the Provincial Executive Committee of the ANC in Limpopo said they have noted the concern of the DA about the removal of their posters in Giyani and have urgently commissioned their own internal investigation into the matter. “We have always reiterated the point of political tolerance and continue to teach members that democracy requires of them to co-exist with others. It’s our responsibility to teach everyone what democracy is.”
Provincial Police spokesperson Moatshe Ngoepe could not be reached for comment.
Story: YOLANDE NEL
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