Potchefstroom- Since being unseated as Tlokwe mayor Maphetle Maphetle has been doing “ground work with the people”, he said on Wednesday.

“I’m busy with a job, I’m in close contact with the community,” Maphetle said outside the Boikhotso Secondary School in Ikageng, Potchefstroom, where a by-election was taking place.

“I’m doing ground work, much easier work and I have more time. This time I’m with the people.”

The former African National Congress mayor said he realised the councillor in ward six, where he lived, was not doing much.

Maphetle said he decided to step in and help the community. He was attending ward meetings and helping residents.

The North West city is currently being run by a Democratic Alliance mayor after councillors voted to unseat Maphetle. This followed a lengthy saga that took a turn in the High Court in Johannesburg.

This was the second time Maphetle had been unseated since November.

While the DA was in charge last year, it requested a forensic investigation into irregularities at the municipality.

The probe found that the council had irregularly bought Maphetle a R736 000 customised Mercedes-Benz. Maphetle allegedly abused the Disaster Management Fund and Poverty Relief Fund.

The report recommended that formal disciplinary action be taken against him and other officials.

In May, the DA laid criminal charges against Maphetle, and in June, Public Protector Thuli Madonsela said she would investigate the claims of corruption involving Maphetle.

Eight by-elections were being held in the North West on Wednesday. All the wards were previously held by the ANC.

One of them, ward nine in Tlokwe, became vacant when the councillor resigned to focus on his job as a teacher.

Maphetle said he came to the by-election in ward nine to support the ANC’s candidate, Mary Segogonyane Mosieleng.

“I’m here to support the ward candidate. It’s a disciplined candidate.”

Sapa

Potchefstroom – Claims of voter intimidation forced the cordoning off on Wednesday of certain sections of Ward Nine, Tlokwe, North West, where by-elections were taking place.

“There have been complaints of (parties) interfering with voters,” presiding officer Modisaotsile Makodi said as he put up Independent Electoral Commission (IEC) tape outside the polling station at the Boikhotso Secondary School in Ikageng, Potchefstroom

“I’m going to go stand on the corner with the police to say they must not touch my voters.”

Makodi said he had a meeting with the provincial liaison committee, made up of members from each party, to discuss the issue.

Political parties were told to stand behind the tape and not interfere with voters.

Juanita Terblanche, Democratic Alliance constituency leader, said a scuffle started when the African National Congress allegedly forced voters to go to its table and not interact with other parties.

“That is intimidation of voters. We asked the presiding officer to come check the situation and make it fair for everyone else,” she said.

Congress of the People member Andrew Radebe claimed that the ANC was escorting voters from the bottom of the road to the gate and telling them to vote for the party.

“They are afraid that they are going to lose which is why they doing this,” he said.

“They also brought their NEC (national executive committee) members to gather more voters.”

The DA, Cope and the independent candidate sat on one side of the parking lot, while the ANC stood on the opposite side.

There was a heavy police presence outside the school gates.

ANC national election organiser Thembeni Nxangisa denied claims of intimidation.

He said the ANC had ferried the voters from their homes. Along the way, they had agreed that their names would be checked at the ANC table.

“We were not intimidating anyone. The only thing that arose was that we were close to the gate (of the school) and the IEC told us to move,” he said.

Emotions ran high as members from rival political parties shouted at each other.

Some ANC members said the DA was using “Tsvangirai tactics” and they would defeat them despite those tactics.

Another member shouted: “We will meet in the streets”.

Sapa

Johannesburg – A suspected hijacker was shot dead in a shoot-out with police in Hillcrest, near Durban, KwaZulu-Natal police said on Wednesday.

Police spokesperson Jay Naicker said police received a report about a hijacking around 19:30 on Tuesday.

They later saw a car fitting the description and tried to pull it over.

“When police attempted to pull over the vehicle the suspects sped off with police giving chase,” he said.

“As the suspects were fleeing they lost control of the vehicle and crashed. It is alleged that they then opened fire at the police and police returned fire.”

One of the men in the car was shot dead while two others escaped.

Provincial police commissioner Lieutenant General Mmamonnye Ngobeni welcomed the “swift reaction” by police.

“Had police not stopped these thugs in their tracks they would have caused further harm to innocent members of the community.”

– SAPA

Johannesburg – Two men who set a spaza shop alight with people inside were sentenced to life imprisonment by the North Gauteng High Court, police said on Wednesday.

Colonel Ronel Otto said Mashegoana Maphile Magana, 29, and Klaas Samuel Tonga, 23, were sentenced on Tuesday to life for murder.

They were also each sentenced to 12 years imprisonment for attempted murder, 10 for common robbery, and eight years for arson. The sentences would run concurrently.

The two robbed Johannes Makola and his wife Jaivana Shabangu at their spaza shop in Ga-Mashegoana, Sekhukhune, in Limpopo in 2008.

“They took cash and groceries. One of the [men] poured petrol all over the shop and set it alight after locking the man and woman inside,” Otto said.

“Although they managed to break free from the shop, both sustained serious burn wounds and were taken to a hospital in Jane Furse for treatment.”

Shabangu died a few days later.

Limpopo police commissioner Lieutenant General Simon Mpembe welcomed the sentence.

– SAPA

Johannesburg – A total of 45 people have been arrested in connection with public violence in Fochville near Carletonville this week, Gauteng police said on Wednesday.

The arrests were made on Monday and Tuesday when residents embarked on a service delivery protest, police spokesperson Katlego Mogale said.

Residents blocked roads with stones and burning tyres.

“A spaza shop, a bottle store, and a house, believed to belong to a councillor, were set on fire,” she said.

On Tuesday, a meeting was held with Community Cafety MEC Faith Mazibuko and Merafong municipality Mayor Maphefo Mogale Letsie.

The protest erupted when the mayor attempted to address residents, and the meeting was called off, said Mogale.

Those arrested would appear in the Carletonville Magistrate’s Court on Thursday

– SAPA

Durban – A minibus taxi driver has been beaten to death by angry commuters following an accident at the Durban taxi rank.

The Mercury reported that James Bantu Khoza, 53, was attacked by commuters after his out-of-control taxi caused mayhem, killing the taxi rank manager and injuring two women and his conductor.

He allegedly drove the taxi into the taxi rank at high speed on Monday afternoon, knocking over two women and veering into a bus before hitting the taxi rank manager and ramming into another minibus taxi.

Khoza was then attacked with beer bottles and rocks and died at the scene.

Source: http://www.news24.com

Potchefstroom – Community sentiment favours an independent candidate in the hotly-contested by-election in ward nine in Tlokwe in the North West province, a voter said on Wednesday.

“This initiative [of an independent candidate] is a proposal from the community,” Tshepo Chempe said outside the polling station at the Boikhotso Secondary School in Ikageng, Potchefstroom.

That was why independent candidate Khotso Ratikoane had been asked to contest the by-election.

“We want good governance, we want ownership, community ownership. Only us as a community can give a mandate to Khotso.”

Chempe said he and Ratikoane were members of the SA National Civic Organisation (Sanco).

Ratikoane had been working with Sanco in the community since 2009.

“We have seen his work, he is passionate,” said Chempe.

“We are confident he has the support of the community.”

No independent candidate has won the ward before.

Five candidates

The ward nine by-election in Tlokwe was being contested by five candidates.

They are: Mary Segogonyane Mosieleng of the ANC, Democratic Alliance candidate Jacky Tobolo, the Congress of the People candidate Phiri Abram Khoarai, Ratikoane, and African People’s Convention candidate Matong Ben Tshesebe.

Thabang Letsogo, an African National Congress Youth League secretary in the region, said he was confident the ANC would win the ward again.

“History is going to repeat itself, the ANC is going to win the majority,” he said.

“It will continue delivering in this area.”

Letsogo was very proud of the fact that he had already voted.

“I have confidence in the ANC, my vote is not a secret,” he said holding up his thumb with a black mark showing he had voted.

Cope provincial secretary Rammupudu Mooketsi said his party in the North West had done the spade work before the by-election.

“We are very confident about our candidate,” he said.

“We are aware that this is a heavily contested election… [but] a miracle might happen.”

Mooketsi said ward nine needed a reputable, transparent, grassroots leader, which Cope had.

He said Cope had become more relevant in the North West and its candidate had the community at heart.

SAPA

Johannesburg – Despite earlier hopes that flights to and from Kenya would merely be delayed, SAA has announced that all flights between Johannesburg and Nairobi have been cancelled on Wednesday.

Following a fire that gutted part of the Jomo Kenyatta International Airport in Nairobi Kenyan authoroties have halted all flight operations to and from the airport. 

Based on this SAA has cancelled both its scheduled flights on that route for the day – flight SA184 from Johannesburg to Nairobi and flight SA185 from Nairobi to Johannesburg.

While all efforts to resume operations are being made by the Kenyan authorities, it is still early for any indication as to when the operations will resume.

The airline has put a recovery plan in place intended to minimise the impact of the inconvenience to its customers. The plan will be activated as soon as a signal is received indicating that the airport has resumed its operations.

Passengers wishing to cancel or reschedule their flights should take note of the following conditions:

All customers with SAA tickets who are affected by the Nairobi flight cancellations will be offered the following assistance either via our Call Centres, City Ticket Offices, Airport Ticket Offices or through their Travel Agent:

– rebooking on the next available flight (same cabin / same booking class) subject to space;

– all date and flight change fees will be waivered;

– this allowance will apply to South African Airways tickets only and not on any other airline tickets;

– the offer must be taken up and tickets re-issued through an SAA office by 12 August 2013; and

– If you are moving to a later date, all such travel must commence on/before 21 August 2013.

Johannesburg – Despite earlier hopes that flights to and from Kenya would merely be delayed, SAA has announced that all flights between Johannesburg and Nairobi have been cancelled on Wednesday.

Following a fire that gutted part of the Jomo Kenyatta International Airport in Nairobi Kenyan authoroties have halted all flight operations to and from the airport. 

Based on this SAA has cancelled both its scheduled flights on that route for the day – flight SA184 from Johannesburg to Nairobi and flight SA185 from Nairobi to Johannesburg.

While all efforts to resume operations are being made by the Kenyan authorities, it is still early for any indication as to when the operations will resume.

The airline has put a recovery plan in place intended to minimise the impact of the inconvenience to its customers. The plan will be activated as soon as a signal is received indicating that the airport has resumed its operations.

Passengers wishing to cancel or reschedule their flights should take note of the following conditions:

All customers with SAA tickets who are affected by the Nairobi flight cancellations will be offered the following assistance either via our Call Centres, City Ticket Offices, Airport Ticket Offices or through their Travel Agent:

– rebooking on the next available flight (same cabin / same booking class) subject to space;

– all date and flight change fees will be waivered;

– this allowance will apply to South African Airways tickets only and not on any other airline tickets;

– the offer must be taken up and tickets re-issued through an SAA office by 12 August 2013; and

– If you are moving to a later date, all such travel must commence on/before 21 August 2013.

By Obakeng Maje

Kimberley-Kimberley police are investigating a case of murder and attempted robbery after a 43 year old male was fatally shot in the chest on Wednesday at approximately 09:20am. 

“It is alleged that the Cash In Transit(CIT) security was busy loading money into a safe at an ATM in Phakamile Mabija Road when the man tried to pass on the pavement” Lieutenant Sergio Kock said. 

The security tried to redirect the person and this led to an argument between the two people. 

“It is further alleged that the man slapped the security guard which prompted the security to draw his gun and fatally injured the man” he said. 

No arrests have been made at this stage and the incident is under investigation. 

All information regarding the incident can forwarded to Detective Warrant Officer Desmond Markgraaf at 082 302 0407 or 08600 10111.-TDN

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