Picture: The Phokwane Local Municipality mayor, Tebogo Afrika and newly appointed Municipal Manager, Zithulele Nikani/Facebook
By OBAKENG MAJE
The embattled Phokwane Local Municipality has appointed the new Municipal Manager. The municipality spokesperson, Kgalalelo Letshabo said in a statement that, the appointment of the Municipal Manager, was amongst items on the agenda during the special council meeting that was convened on 3 May 2023.
Letshabo further said after thorough engagements and debate, the council resolved to appoint Zithulele Nikani on a five-year contract, effective from 8 May 2023.
“A contract is stipulated on the Local government: Municipal structures Act 2000 that the employment should be up to a maximum of five years, not exceeding a period ending a year after the election of the next council meeting.
“Today, the mayor, Tebogo Afrika, introduced Nikani to the staff. In his remarks, Afrika said, it is with great honour and privilege to welcome Nikani back to the municipality. He said Nikani’s appointment will bridge the service delivery gap and bring stability after a lengthy duration,” she said.
Letshabo further said, Afrika requested the officials to give necessary support Nikani.
Nikani said, he was happy to be appointed as the new Municipal Manager. He said, he will embark on a face-to-face, section-to-section meetings with officials to get a sense of what are the challenges and how do they improve much-needed service delivery.
Nikani holds BA Honours in African Studies, Certificate in Executive Leadership Municipal Development Programme, certificate of attendance in Bid Committee and certificate in Public Finance and Fiscal management in the Local Government.
He has more than ten years’ experience in Local Government and he is a former Director of Community Services and acting Municipal Manager.
Picture: The convicted murderer and rapist, Thabo Bester at the Bloemfontein Magistrate’s Court/Google
By GILBERT MOTSAATHEBE
There are striking similarities between the current story of convicted rapist and murderer Thabo Bester and another story involving a conman who stole large sums of money from unsuspecting South Africans in the 1930s. In 1934, a man purporting to be the son of Emperor Haile Selassie and heir to the Abyssinian (present-day Ethiopia) throne arrived in South Africa with a startling story.
According to an article published by Drum Magazine in June 1981, the man using the name Prince Yusuf claimed that Italian Prime Minister Benito Mussolini was planning chemical warfare and that the poisonous gas would engulf the rest of South Africa. He claimed that he has connections and could arrange the necessary protective gear for those who do not want to be killed by the gas.
He hurriedly formed a company and told people to invest so they could be supplied with the necessary safety equipment to ensure that they survive the fatal chemicals the Italians were about to unleash. His company however was not a property or media company, it was more like a political movement called the African Legion.
As the Drum reported “the legion was to fight to save South Africa from the Italians and in a massive recruitment drive recruits were told that poison gas would be used in the war and the smoke would fill South Africa.
“It [The gas] would kill everybody apart from those in the legion who would be specially equipped with protective uniforms (cost 2 pounds) and gas masks (2 pounds five shillings). Membership of the Legion cost 2 pounds five shillings”.
The Money started coming in.
However, it turned out that Prince Yusuf was a big-time swindler. His name was not Yusuf either and he was not a prince. He was in fact a local South African by the name of David Kgobe.
Now, recently South Africans were absorbed in another reverting story of similar proportions if not more involving a convicted rapist and murderer, Thabo Bester and her girlfriend, Dr Nandipha Magudumana, South Africa’s modern-day Clive and Derby who arrived in Tanzania with Thabo posing as a US citizen before being arrested and sent back to South Africa.
The interesting thing is that a year prior Thabo Bester who was in jail for rape and murder among others had launched a daring escape leaving behind a trail of destruction including a charred body and a doused cell.
It later emerged that he had been alive and well living a lofty lifestyle in one of the leafy suburbs of Johannesburg and had been sleeping in one of the presidential suites of some of our luxurious hotels while many thought he was in prison. The similarities between Prince Yusuf and Tom Motsepe alias TK Nkwana or Tommy William Kelly are startling.
Perhaps the first and obvious similarity is that both men were big-time fraudsters who were not afraid to come up with elaborate plans to con unsuspecting people.
Secondly, they both started scam companies and enticed people to invest large sums of money. Kgobe formed the African Legion and the South African Mark Trading Corporation LTD, while Bester formed the 21st Century Media and a construction company called Arum Properties. They both recruited people who started investing in their respective companies.
They both used aliases throughout their criminal escapades. They both claimed to be related to famous people. Bester claimed to be related to business Patrice Motsepe while Kgobe claimed to be reacted to Ethiopian Ruler Emperor Haile Selassie. They both went for an elaborate spectacle to launch their companies. As the money started rolling in, Kgobe went for the spectacle to launch the movement in the glitz and glamour.
As the Drum reported: “In a comic opera attempt at a show, the army began drilling, marching and countermarching with sticks instead of rifles”.
Similarly, Bester organised a glitzy ceremony in Sandton and even appeared in a video link at his Women in Media Conference attended by some of the country’s A-Listers who even belted a happy birthday song for Thabo Bester, apparently thinking that he was Tom Motsepe, the company’s CEO. In the case of Kgobe, he later slipped off the country briefly, telling told his members that he was being deported back to Ethiopia but that they must keep the Legion going. But he was back in 1938 and he started a new venture.
This time, he told followers that he had a connection with an English wool manufacturer, claiming that their products were of good quality and started another company. “He flouted a company called the South African Mark Trading Corporation Ltd. A wide network of agents was set up and people bought shares in the new corporation.”
But the amazing prince was not done. He told investors that he was forming a bank called the Bantu Bank and that he needed 10 000 pounds to get it off the ground. The investors were promised huge interest.
“Once again the money began flowing”.
It was only when members started to worry when they realised that there was still no sign of poison gas that people started paying attention. In the same breath, Bester had started at least two known companies namely a property investment company and a media company called 21st Century Media. Like Kgobe, Bester claimed that his company had a connection with a foreign company as he purported that the company was a subsidiary of 21st Century Fox.
The two stories have all the hallmarks of a successful blockbuster, with compelling plots, unimaginable twists, suspense and daring and audacious characters. In both cases the odds are stacked against the main characters and the tension builds as our characters find their way taking the audience on an elaborate journey of discovery.
What can we learn?
As Bop Leshoi once wrote in a preface to a popular youth novel Albatross Winter, although stories are not necessarily meant to teach us moral lessons, incidental lessons do happen. Perhaps what we can learn from the two stories are the same old rules of thumb: do not believe everything that you hear; trust no one; rules are made to be broken; crime does not pay.
Note: (Gilbert Motsaathebe (PhD) is an NRF-rated Professor at the North-West University in the Indigenous Language Media in Africa (ILMA) research entity. He was until recently the Editor-in-Chief of Communicare—Journal for Communication Studies in Africa)
Picture: The embattled ANC ward councillor, Tebogo Sepale/Facebook
By OBAKENG MAJE
A statutory rape case against the disgraced ANC ward 25 councillor, Tebogo Sepale has been postponed 17 may 2023 by the Orkney Magistrate’s Court. Sepale (43) has requested a week to appoint a private attorney to represent him.
The National Prosecuting Authority (NPA) spokesperson in North West, Henry Mamothame said, Sepale will remain in police custody until his next court appearance and the state intend to oppose his bail application.
“Sepale is facing 11 provisional charges, two for statutory rape, three for the violation of a child with consent, one for manufacturing pornographic material, four for rape and one for sexual intimidation. The state is not ruling out the possibility of more charges being added.
“His court appearance emanates from a report by the police indicating that, the Klerksdorp Family Violence, Child Protection and Sexual Offences (FCS) Unit, was investigating a case of crimen injuria and two separate counts of statutory rape, after they were reported at Kanana Police Station respectively,” he said.
Mamothame further said, in one of the cases, Sepale allegedly shared a nude picture of his private parts with the complainant. He added that, in the second and separate case, but involving the same accused, two counts of statutory rape were laid on 6 May 2023, by the parents of two boys aged 15 and 17.
“Investigations are still underway to gather more evidence against Sepale. The public is urged to refrain from circulating sexual content of any form through all mediums as it may compromise the victims and their families, as well as the investigations into the matter,” said Mamothame.
Meanwhile, the Director of Public Prosecutions (DPP) in North West, Dr Rachel Makhari Sekhaolelo, together with the North West Police Commissioner, Lieutenant General Sello Kwena, lauded the police for acting swiftly in arresting the accused. He said a senior public prosecutor has been assigned to the case, owing to its serious nature.
Setshwantsho: Tsela e e sa tsamaegeng ya kwa motseng wa Tlapeng
Ka OBAKENG MAJE
Baagi ba motse wa Tlapeng gaufi le Taung, ba ikuela go Lefapha la Dithuto Tsa Setshaba le Ditsela mo Bokone Bophirima go ka ba direla tsela e e siameng. Baagi bano, ba kaile fa ele sebaka jaanong ba ntse ba ikuela go lefapha go ka tsaya dingongorego tsa bone tsia.
Seno se tla morago ga gore, bakgweetsi ba tlhalose fa tsela e e kopanyang Tlapeng 1 le Tlapeng 2, e relela. Mongwe wa bakgwetsi kwa motseng o, Nicky Moamogwa are, ba kopane le matsapa mo letsatsing la maabane mo mosong.
“Wa itse tsela e, ya relela morago ga dipula. Jaanong, rene ke kopa thuso go tswa kwa lefapheng la ditsela go ka tsereganya. Baagi kgale ba ntse ba bontsha go sa itumela mabapi le tsela e, gonne ke lobaka re ikuela gore re direlwe tsela e e siameng.
“Mo mosong wa maabane, go batlile go diragala kotsi e maswe fa sejanaga se se pegang bana ba sekolo sene se relela le go batla go tlhola kotsi. Ga re gane tsela e, e ntse ele maswe mme e tsamaega. Ga re itse gore ba lefapha ba e tshetse eng, gonne ga jaana ke seretse fela mo go yone,” Moamogwa wa tlhalosa.
O kaile fa tsela e, ele yone fela e ba ka e dirisang mo motseng wa bone, gonne go sena ditsela. Moamogwa are, ba kopile tsireganyo go tswa kwa go molekgotlha wa bone, mme o ba tlhaloseditse fa a tla kopa motsamaisi wa Lefapha la Ditsela kwa sedikeng go tla go lekola tsela e.
Kgabagare, morulaganyi wa tsa tlhaeletsano wa palamenteng kwa Lefapheng la Ditsela (Parliamentary Liaison Officer), Moreotsile Olifant, o kaile fa mokhuduthamaga wa Lefapha La Ditsela, Oageng Molapisi a tlile go etela metse e tshwana le Modimong, Manthe ga mmogo le Matsheng mono Taung go ka tla go buisana ka ditsela, fela tsela ya Tlapeng yone ga e yo mo lenaneng la dipuisano tseo.
“Kennete gore mokhuduthamaga o tla be a le ko Taung, mme fela tsela ya Tlapeng ga eo mo lenaneng la gagwe. Dipuisano mabapi le tsela eo, di tshwanetse gore di nne ma gareng ga lefapha la ditsela kwa sedikeng, masepala ga mmogo molekgotlha.
“Fela, ke tlhaloganya gore molekgotlha o buisane le ba lefapha kwa sedikeng, mme re solofela fa ba tsibogela dingongorego tseo. Re tlhaloganya gore, ba lefapha kwa sedikeng, ke bone ba ba neng ba gogorupa tsela eo,” Olifant wa tlhalosa.
Two men arrested for drugs worth R80 000 by the Provincial Drugs Task Team members in Potchefstroom appeared in court. Chika Chukwuemeka Fafour (29) and Dickson Emeka Njoku (43) were arrested for being in possession of suspected illicit drugs and additional charge of contravention of Section 49 (1)(a) of the Immigration Act, 2002 (Act No.13 of 2002).
The North West police spokesperson, Capt Aafje Botma said: “Fafour will remain in custody until his next court appearance on 12 May 2023 for a formal bail application. Njoku who was granted a R8000 bail, will be back in court on 14 June 2023.
“The Provincial Organised Crime received an information about two vehicles that were travelling on Albert Luthuli road towards Promosa Township in Potchefstroom to deliver drugs. A white Hyundai and a red Volkswagen Polo, were eventually stopped at two different spots by the local police and the Provincial Drugs Task Team members.”
She said the drugs to the value of R50 000 were found in the Hyundai and Fafour was arrested. Botma further said, a while later, a red Volkswagen Polo was also stopped near Promosa Graveyard on Albert Luthuli road.
“Upon searching the vehicle, 38 crystal meth and two big sealed plastic bags containing 32 Cat and 8 heroines with estimated street value of R30 000 were found,” said Botma.
Meanwhile, the North West Police Commissioner, Lieutenant Sello Kwena, lauded the police for arresting the suspects as part of ridding communities of drugs.
Picture: The road construction project in Molelema
By OBAKENG MAJE
North MEC for Public Works and Roads, Gaoage Oageng Molapisi is expected to meet with various stakeholders including community members to make pronouncement regarding the 15km road construction project that links Molelema and Matsheng in Taung.
Molapisi said the Road Project number PWR239/14 for the upgrading gravel to surface standard road D209, D208, D206, D997, D220 and Z216 has been on hold due to a dispute between his department and the contractor, which has since been resolved.
“We will convene a community meeting to re-introduce the contractor and sod-turning ceremony. The proceeding will take place at Matsheng Community Hall at 2pm,” he said.
In 2021, a road construction project worth over R65 million was brought to a grinding halt after the department terminated the contract of the contractor, Botong Nkolele JV Construction over the obligation dispute.
However, the director of Botong Nkolele JV Construction, Daddy Tong took the matter for an arbitration and won the case in December 2021. The department was allegedly instructed to reinstate the Botong Nkolele JV Construction, but that did not happen.
Last year, residents decided to fix the road by grading it.
One of the residents, Pogisho Afrika said, they have decided to fix the road because the deterioration of the road hits home on a personal level. He said they have requested each household to donate R5, while motorists donate R10.
“As locals, we fixed this road by grading the road using wheelbarrows. We are grateful because we have received unwavering support from our people. We have lost hope of getting any tarred road in our area. Recently, we have experienced torrential rains and our roads are inaccessible.
“This is all happening because of the perceived ineptitude of the department. It is difficult to run our errands without an accessible road. We also experience difficulties to access healthcare centres, in terms of emergency,” Afrika said.
At the time, the contractor, Daddy Tong said: “At this stage, the department has not adjudicated our claims to the value of about R25 million. They have been mute and never responded to our plea for adjudication and processing of payments. This matter is part of the issues we have included in our court proceedings.
“Prior to this, the department had defaulted in the payment of two invoices. We submitted invoice of R15 million on 12 July 2020, and it was only paid on 28 December 2020. We also submitted another invoice on 24 August 2020, and it was only paid on 30 April 2021,” he said.
Tong further said all invoices were paid after a struggle, even though there was no valid reason issued by the department to explain the delay. He added that the dispute started on 2 June 2020 after the department realised that they had made a gross error.
“They did not follow correct procedure when awarding a contract. In terms of procurement and contract requirements, the department was supposed to identify errors in the pricing of the contractor prior awarding of contract.
“This is called arithmetic error correction and they failed to follow the procedure prior awarding of the contract on 27 September 2019. The contract is a re-measurable contract and that means the price of R65 918 991.18 awarded does not necessarily entail final price once the work is completed,” he said.
Picture: ANC ward councillor, Tebogo Sepale accused of having sex with an underage boy/Facebook
By OBAKENG MAJE
The disgraced ANC ward 25 councillor, who is facing two counts of statutory rape and crimen injuria, is expected to appear at Orkney Magistrate’s Court today. Tebogo Sepale (40) was arrested on Sunday after he was seen allegedly having sex with an underage boy in a video that went viral on various social media platforms.
The Congress of South African Trade Unions (COSATU) in the North West condemned Sepale’s alleged actions and said it was disappointed by his barbaric conduct. COSATU provincial secretary, Kopano Konopi said, they have learned that, Sepale allegedly molested young boys and girls in exchange of services.
“While doing that, he continued to record his acts and distributed on social media. In our view as COSATU, this is an act which must be condemned by the society at large. This kind of people should not be allowed to live with people and must be placed where they belong.
“It is also disgusting to the fact that, the community have trusted this person and have elected him as their representative in the council. It is expected of him to be the one who advocate for the rights of the community, instead he took advantage of the vulnerability that the community find itself in,” said Konopi.
He further said, as COSATU, the deployment of this shoddy characters by the ANC is an indication that, the ruling party, particularly in the North West, failed to implement the ANC constitution and policies of the organisation as guided by national.
“We also welcome the swift action by the law enforcement agencies for arresting him and we hope that proper and thorough investigation will be conducted, which will lead to conviction.
“We call on the ANC to summarily dismiss this person as a member. The ANC cannot continue to claim to be a leader of society, if it continues to keep membership of people who abuse the society. COSATU further calls on the ANC to do a thorough vetting of all its public representatives at all levels and also do the same to leadership of the ANC in all structures of the ANC,” said Konopi.
Meanwhile, the Forum 4 Service Delivery (F4SD) call for a harsh action to be taken against Sepale.
F4SD councillor, Matebogo Mosiako said: “We are of a view that perverts such as Sepale should not be given bail as they are not fit to be among the society due to this despicable behaviour. This heinous behaviour is no different to Gerhard Ackerman who was recently found guilty of over 700 counts including rape, sexual grooming, possession of child pornography, and sexual exploitation of children.
“The F4SD members, together with the residents of Kanana, will protest outside Orkney Magistrate’s Court, where the ANC pervert is expected to appear for his bail application.”
She said they are also working together with other Gender-Based Violence (GBV) activists because they believe there should be no room for violence in the communities.
Twelve people aged between 21 and 36 facing numerous charges of aiding and abetting of criminal gang activities, murder, attempted murder, possession of unlicensed firearm, insurance fraud, kidnapping, rape, assault, conspiracy to commit murder and contravention of Section 9 Act 121 of 1998 Gang related offenses briefly appeared in the Kimberley Magistrate’s Court on Friday.
Chane Adams (27), Shawnwin Smith (24), Henry Blom (27), Estee Sade Lawan (24), Bincent Rosen (36), Michael Peters, Semone Rose 29), Thabo Sekopano (36), Stephanie Mc Anda (21), Britney Arends (20), Janine Plaatjie (21) and Abigail Van Wyk (23) were arrested on 4 and 5 May 2023 in a multi-disciplinary approach consisting of the Hawks Serious Organised Crime Investigation and Serious Commercial Crime Investigation team, Provincial Serious Organised Crime team and Crime Prevention.
The Hawks spokesperson in Northern Cape, Lieutenant Col Tebogo Thebe said, the accused persons were arrested simultaneously in Kimberley and Kuruman. Thebe further said it is alleged that, between August 2020 and March 2023, a well-known gang from Kimberley was engaged in the above-mentioned criminal activities.
“During the arrest, one of the accused was found in possession of mandrax tablets and an undisclosed amount of money, which were confiscated for further investigation. An additional case against the accused was registered for dealing in drugs.
“They appeared alongside with the main accused, Goerge Barnett Peters and accomplices Deon May, Shawnwin Smith, Shakireeh Pike, Nico Hofuza, Pameston Mentoor and Tshepo Talimbi. The case was postponed to 31 May 2023 for possible bail application. The accused persons will remain in custody,” he said.
The Guardian 