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diepos.linmedia.co.za
28 Maart, 2013
DIE POS/THE POST
Change of route leads to protest march anarchy “There is only one reason why we are here and that is to give the memorandum to the mayor. We want to give her seven working days to respond. But because we mean nothing to her, she is ignoring us...” The long awaited protest march against alleged maladministration and poor service delivery in Mookgophong left some protesters injured and three arrested. The protest started with a night vigil on Thursday night, 21 March, and accumulated into a march through the town on Friday, 22 March. Protesters used the night vigil to organise themselves into groups and planned their march, as well as the handing over of their memorandum to the mayor of Mookgophong, Sarah Monyamane.
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The protest march spiralled out of control on Friday when police told protesters that they could not use Thabo Mbeki Drive via Nelson Mandela Street. According to organisers, this was news to the protesters because the route was approved when they applied for a permit to march through town. The decision sparked anger and some of the protesters tried to force their way past the police onto their planned route. Police retaliated with rubber bullets and arrested three of the protest leaders. Sello Nkoana, Nyeko Makaneta and Lesiba Seshoka were arrested and charged with contravening section 12 of Act 205 of 1993 on public gathering. They appeared before the Mookgophong Magistrate’s Court and their case was postponed to Wednesday, 17 April. A rubber bullet hit Seun Meropa at the back of his head, Hackson Madubaduba was hit on his side and Pule Galane had to be taken to hospital after a rubber bullet hit him in the neck. Protesters did not take the arrests and injuries lying down. They swore at police officers and demanded that their leaders should be released. Their main cause for concern was that the memo-
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The protesters gathered in front of the Mookgophong municipal building, where they were supposed to hand over their memorandum. Photo: TK Mashaba
randum was in possession of the three arrested ringleaders. After the three leaders were released on their own accountability, they re-joined the march. While they were in custody, things calmed down considerably and the protesters reconvened and took the revised route to the municipal buildings. Their leaders met them there to hand over the memorandum to the mayor. When protesters arrived at the municipality, the gates were closed and there was a heavy police presence. The mayor was not available to receive the memorandum and no other municipal delegate came forward to receive the memorandum. The protesters found this insulting. Sello Nkoana, spokesperson for the SACP sub district, said that the mayor and the municipality undermined the residents by not listening to their complaints.
“There is only one reason why we are here and that is to give the memorandum to the mayor. We want to give her seven working days to respond. But because we mean nothing to her, she is ignoring us,” he said. Nkoana claimed that he was scheduled to share a radio slot on Thobela FM with the mayor and the police spokesperson for Mookgophong. They were supposed to go on air on Sunday morning, 24 March, and discuss the march. He said that he was shocked to find that she did not pick up her telephone when the radio station called her. “We will not rest until she has listened to us and all our demands are met,” he said. The Beat, sister publication of The Post, tried to contact the mayor and the police spokesperson of Mookgophong, but both were unavailable for comment at the time of going to press. — The Beat