Daily Archives: October 15, 2024

A man who shot and killed his girlfriend sentenced to life imprisonment  

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By BAKANG MOKOTO

15 October 2024- A man (39), who killed his girlfriend was sentenced to life imprisonment by the Pretoria High Court. Ngagalela Kekana from Olievenhoutbosch, Ext 7, killed his girlfriend, Realeboga Georgina Joels.

According to the National Prosecuting Authority (NPA) regional spokesperson in Gauteng, Lumka Mahanjana, the couple had been in a relationship for seven years. Mahanjana said the tragic incident occurred on the night of 21 October 2022, after they returned from a local tuck shop to Joels’ rented shack.

“An argument broke out between them, during which Kekana shot Joels in the head, resulting in her death at the scene. The following morning, Kekana approached a neighbour, claiming that Joels had been injured and left.

“A concerned neighbour approached the landlord, and together they went to Joels’ shack. Upon entering, they discovered Joels’ naked body on the bed, with her head wrapped in a towel soaked in blood,’ she said.

Mahanjana further said the neighbours then called the police and community members, when the community arrived at the scene, Kekana also returned. She added that upon his return, he was arrested and has been remanded in custody since.

In court, Kekana pleaded not guilty to the charges, maintaining that he was not present at the time of Joels’ death. However, state advocate David Molokomme presented compelling evidence and called witnesses that conclusively proved Kekana’s guilt. 

During the sentencing proceedings, Kekana’s legal representative requested the court to consider alternatives to the prescribed minimum sentence, citing the two years he spent in custody awaiting trial. However, Molokomme argued vehemently for life imprisonment, emphasizing both the severity of the offence and its prevalence in South Africa.

“The victim had been killed by her partner, a person who should have been her protector, especially given that she did not have family in Gauteng. The state also handed in a Victim Impact Statement (VIS) facilitated by the Court Preparation Officer (CPO), Lebogang Lebese, in which the landlord who was also a friend of the deceased expressed her grief over the loss,” said Molokomme.

He said the landlord noted that Joels had no family in Gauteng, she only had three dogs, which were given away after her death. She said, however, one of the dogs continues to visit her home daily.

“Not only that, she said, she was also left with a burden of having to bury her friend since her family in the Free State was unable to,” he said.

Judge Edwin Masopa concurred with the state’s position, noting Kekana’s lack of remorse and the brutal nature of the crime. Masopa underscored that no sentence could bring back the deceased or heal the hearts of those affected by his actions.

“Therefore, Kekana needs to be permanently removed from society so that children and women can live knowing that he can never harm them. As such, I found no substantial and compelling circumstances to deviate from imposing the prescribed minimum sentence of life imprisonment,” he said.

Meanwhile, after being sentenced, Kekana applied for leave to appeal his conviction and sentence. However, the state successfully opposed this application, which was subsequently denied.

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Couple irked as their RDP house is ‘illegally’ occupied  

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Picture: Gopolang Joseph Motsumi with his wife, Keolebogile Evy Motsumi

By OBAKENG MAJE 

15 October 2024- Even though illegal occupation of RDP houses is a serious offence, many houses in Extension 6, in Taung, are being illegally occupied. It is alleged that they bought those houses from some of the Greater Taung Local Municipality (GTLM) officials. 

One of the victims, Gopolang Joseph Motsumi (60) from Mokgareng village, near Taung, said he applied for a RDP house many years ago, but he was surprised to see it being illegally allocated to somebody else. Motsumi said he was looking for a job around the area when he noticed his RDP house in Extension 6.

“I went to the municipality to inquire about my house. Indeed, they confirmed that the house belongs to me. They gave me a letter to hand it over to the illegal occupant.  

“However, even though he agreed that he is aware that the house belongs to me, he does not budge. He said he will only leave the house when his RDP house he applied for is ready,” he said.

Motsumi, who stays in a one-roomed shack with his wife and children, said his livelihood has been affected over the years due to this matter. He further said the municipality is not doing enough to help him recover his house. 

“It’s been years since I tried to get any assistance from the municipality, but I’m being sent from pillar to post. From my understanding, illegal occupation of RDP houses is unlawful. 

“But, it seems the municipality is doing nothing to prevent residents who jump the housing queue by embarking on illegal acts by occupying RDP houses,” said Motsumi. 

He added that it is disgusting to have a situation, where people just break the law with impunity.

Meanwhile, the Greater Taung Local Municipality (GTLM) spokesperson, Ricky Oliphant said: “We have had engagements with two gentlemen in an effort to resolve the matter. The municipality cannot be able to comment on the reasons for the allocation as that was effected by another party.

“The allocation was done by the North West Housing Corporation (NWHC). We are aware that there are many RDP houses being illegally occupied in the area. These are normally resolved through eviction of the wrong party.”

Oliphant said such problems might have been caused by difficulties to trace the rightful beneficiaries, in that case, other people on the list would be granted the right to occupy the property until the rightful beneficiary is traced. He said the municipality is exploring possibilities of assisting Motsumi to access his rightful house. 

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A stakeholder structure to address racial tensions in Hartbeespoort Dam

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Picture: The owner of the business that was torched/Twitter

By KEDIBONE MOLAETSI

15 October 2024- The Deputy Minister of the Department of Water and Sanitation, David Mahlobo said they will establish a structure consisting of all stakeholders to address issues over the use of the state-owned land, promote inclusive economic growth and advance the healthy ecosystem of the water resource at the Hartbeespoort Dam. This comes after a stakeholder engagement meeting led by Mahlobo at the department’s offices at the Dam on 14 October 2024. 

He further said the structure will be led by him and the North West Premier, Lazarus Mokgosi or a designate will include business owners operating around the state-owned land, civil society organisations, community representatives, provincial and local government as well traditional leaders, and is expected to have its first sitting early next month.

Mahlobo added that the Hartbeespoort Dam has been a hub for business, tourism and socio-economic activities for locals for decades, but there has been on-going racial tension between the occupiers of the state-owned land, who are conducting business and the locals.

“Different representatives of various stakeholders came under one roof and had an opportunity to express their views on the on-going tensions at the dam. Eventually, there was a mutual agreement to establish a structure to be led by the Ministry of Water and Sanitation, which will expand on issues raised during the stakeholder engagement and pave the way for co-existence among different stakeholders with a purpose of resolving the issues and advancing economic growth.

“We condemn acts of violence that were inflicted on some of the business owners and their businesses and call on law enforcement agencies to ensure that all those responsible face the might of the law,” he said.

Mahlobo expressed his satisfaction at the deliberations and highlighted that he believes the structure that is being set will bring peace among the stakeholders. He said they have had a fruitful meeting with different views from people with different backgrounds.

“There was a subsequent agreement to establish a structure that will deal decisively with the issues raised during the deliberations. We are of the view that this dam, which has become a source of conflict, can become a beacon of hope to many by bringing prosperity.

“It can also be a reflection of our unified and diversified democratic country, which is non-racist and non-sexist. We also addressed an issue of lease agreements on the state-owned land at the dam, which has been a contentious issue among some of the business owners,’ said Mahlobo.

He said previously, some of the business owners had 99-year-old leases and have been in occupation of the land through many generations without any formal documents and authorisation from the state. Mahlobo said as a result, the department developed a lease policy, which was finalised in 2020.

“This was to address previous gaps and to also guide and provide a comprehensive framework for managing leases and has subsequently established a lease committee to assess and recommend lease applications for approvals to the delegated authority.

“Between 2020 and 2022, DWS has approved 4 lease agreements for recreational purposes at the dam for a duration between 5 and 9 years and 11 months.

“This year, the Department has issued Expressions of interest (EOI) to private or public entities that are interested to lease the state-owned land and to obtain access rights to state dams, and/or to enter into lease agreements with the department in terms of its lease policy,” he said. 

Mahlobo said the purpose of the EOI is to provide equal opportunity for all potential applicants, both public and private and to address public concerns regarding the transparency, fairness, and competitiveness of the leasing process.

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Police are looking for missing man 

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Picture: The missing man, Simon Quincy Khumalo/Supplied

By REGINALD KANYANE 

15 October 2024– The police in Rustenburg request community assistance in locating a missing man, Simon Quincy Khumalo (26), who resides at Corner Heights in Adelaide Street, Cashan, Rustenburg. The North West police spokesperson, Colonel Adele Myburgh said according to information, Khumalo was last seen by his sister on 28 September 2024, when he left home to visit friends, but never returned.

“A search was conducted around Rustenburg and all leads were followed-up without successful results. At the time of his disappearance, Khumalo was wearing grey tracksuit pants, a blue top and red sneakers. 

“He is dark in complexion with brown eyes, a slender build body, 1.6m tall with afro hair. Furthermore, his upper teeth are gold and silver plated,” she said.  

Myburgh said anyone who may have information regarding the missing person’s whereabouts, can contact the Investigating Officer, Constable Charles Tebeli on 082 772 3028 or the South African Police Service (SAPS) Crime Stop number on 08600 10111. She said anonymous tip-offs can be communicated via the MySAPS App from your smartphone.

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Ngwana o mongwe gape o nyeletse kwa Magogong 

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Setshwantsho: Rethabile Angel Molapo/Facebook 

Ka OBAKENG MAJE 

15 Diphalane 2024- Sepodisi sa Taung se tlhalositse fa se boloditse dipatlisiso tsa go nyelela ga motho. Se se tla morago ga go nyelela ga mosetsanyana wa kwa motseng wa Modutung, gaufi le Taung ka Lamatlhatso. 

Go begwa fa Rethabile Angel Molapo (11), a ile a rumiwa go ya go tsaya seaparo sa kereke kwa gagabo, mme o ile a nyelela mo go boeng ga gagwe. 

Sebueledi sa sepodisi mo sedikeng sa Dr Ruth Segomotsi Mompati, Warrant Officer Tryphosa van Rooyen are, sepodisi se butse kgetsi mme dipatlisiso di tsweletse. 

“Molapo ke motho wa mmele o mosesanyane, ona le matlho a matonna, mme one a apere mosese o motala ka mmala, ebile a rwele ditekkie tsa Adidas tse dintsho fa a ne a timela. 

“Go fitlha ga jaana ga nkitla re shupa ope ka monwana, gonne ga rena dintlha. Fela, re ikuela go mongwe le mongwe o a ka tswang a mo bone, go ka itsise sepodisi ka bonako,” van Rooyen wa tlhalosa. 

Mongwe wa baeteledipele ba baagi, Kenneth Jampane are: “Tota go bua nnete, kgang e ga ya re tsaya sentle. Baagi ba utlwile botlhoko thata ebile ba tlhobaela. Re a ipotsa gore, a mme selo se e tlile go nna selo modiro. Ngwaga le ngwaga ngwana wa nyelelang. 

“Jaanong, matsapa ke gore ga re itse mokgwa o dirisiwang wa go utswa bana. Ke belaela gore tsela e dirisiwang go ka utswa bana mo motseng, ke tsela nngwe e e tletseng setegeniki sa boloi.” 

Jampane are o belaela gore mokgwa o dirisiwang ke wa boloi, gonne fa ngwana a fetsa go nyelela, baagi ba tla be ba tlolaka, ba batlana le ngwana, mme go sena motlhala. Are, fale baagi ba tla be ba itlhoboga. 

“A jaanong, re tla feleletsa re patelesega gore re dumele gore ke mokgwa o o teng wa gore ngwaga le ngwaga ngwana wa nyelela mo motseng wa rona? Fela, ga re kitla re itlhoboga mo go lwantseng mokgwa o bosula o. 

“Selo seo se maswe, ebile ga se re itumedise. Batho ba rona ba tlolaka ba ya kwa dingakeng go batla thuso, fela ga go nko e tswang lemina. Re ikuela go bagolo gore ba leke ka natla go ka tlhokomela bana, gonne re a bona gore gona le setegeniki sa boloi se se dirisiwang go ka utswa bana mo motseng,” Jampane. 

Are o ile a feleletsa a ikuetse kwa baaging gore go botokwa fa ba ka ikega ka thapelo, mme ba boele kwa Modimong gonne mmaba o eme ka dinao.     

Kgabagare, ka ngwaga wa 2022, go ile ga nyelela lekgarebe, Oratile Mothibi teng kwa Modutung, mme le go fitlha ga jaana ga ise a bonwe. 

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