Chief accused of theft

FARM ROW: ‘ATTACKED’ FAMILY MEMBERS SAY JUSTICE SYSTEM FAILS THEM

‘Traditional leader and his group were trespassing on our father’s land.’

Alocal traditional leader at Tshitanini Village outside Thohoyandou in Limpopo has been dragged to court by a distraught family after the chief allegedly took part of the land belonging to a villager and used it without their permission.

But the irate family is blaming the criminal justice system for letting them down after a docket went missing in court and they were not told about it, while the chief was not arrested for the act.

The matter was reported at the Thohoyandou police station a day after an alleged assault but the family was being sent from pillar to post while the alleged culprit is roaming free. They were not give a straight answer about the date of the court appearance and why the chief was not arrested.

The chief, who may not be named as he has yet to plead in court, was found with a group of people busy tilling the land and planting mealies by members of the late owner’s family.

A member of the family, Mushadu Mulovhedzi, recorded the group on his cellphone but they charged on him before apparently assaulting the young man and allegedly took away his cellphone.

Another family member, Ratshibvumo Mulovhedzi, said the entire group, including the chief and his son, came and assaulted his younger brother, Mushadu, until he became unconscious.

He said while Mushadu was lying on the ground, his nephew, Vhuhone Mathoho, tried to intervene but the chief’s son grabbed him and allegedly throttled him.

The mob, including the chief, also went for Ratshibvumo’s sister, Vhengani Mulovhedzi, who was in the car and also taking a video of mob assaulting Mushadu.

Although she was carrying a baby, they allegedly pulled her by her hair, assaulted her before taking her cellphone and deleted the video footage. They allegedly ignored her baby who was crying.

Mushadu was rushed to Tshilidzini hospital where he was treated and complained about abdominal pains before the matter was reported to the Thohoyandou police station.

When contacted, the chief initially said he knew nothing about the assault but later said his lawyers would call, but they did not do so. The chief declined to give the lawyer’s contact details.

“The chief and his people were trespassing on our father’s land,” Ratshibvumo said.

He said before the incident, the chief came and allegedly cut the fence around the farm, saying it was his land. The chief and his group were not arrested. Instead, the chief was invited to come to the police station.

According to Ratshibvumo, the matter was supposed to be before court on Monday but they were surprise to find that the chief was not called and the magistrate told them that the docket was missing. The family waited in court on Monday but nobody told them the case was not on the court roll.

“All cases involving the chief disappear because people are afraid of him,” said Ratshibvumo.

“But we believe that there is nobody above the law. The criminal justice system is failing us as ordinary people as we are robbed of our father’s land by a chief.

“The chief is supposed to be a leader but he is doing this. Who do we go to if our leader is robbing us?” added Ratshibvumo.

He said his sister also laid a charge at the police station but she was not given a case number, which apparently indicated that the case was not opened by the police in Thohoyandou.

An attempt to get comment from the Limpopo police provincial spokesperson, Colonel Malesela Ledwaba, were unsuccessful at the time of publication, as his cellphone rang unanswered.

He also did not respond to a WhatsApp message.