Children’s deaths fuel political spat

THE deaths of five children on Saturday in Soshanguve Block X, after being hit by an unstable high-mast lighting ring, has been turned into a political fight.

ANC members yesterday disrupted Tshwane mayor Solly Msimanga during his planned visit to the bereaved families.

Chaotic scenes erupted when ANC supporters and community members threatened to prevent Msimanga from getting out of his official vehicle, parked outside the house where two of the dead children stayed.

Msimanga was scheduled to visit all the bereaved families around 10am. Outside the house of sisters Dimakatso and Tsholofelo Bopape on the dusty street of Soshanguve, the riotous group, some in ANC T-shirts, approached the vehicle with Msimanga inside.

They were kept at bay by metro police officers, who fired rubber bullets at them.

The officers were from the 29 “dangerous” force, who were two weeks ago welcomed by Msimanga from a crowd-management training at Thabazimbi in Limpopo.

Amid the chaos, Msimanga was whisked away by his VIP drivers as community members fled the rubber bullets.

The metro officers chased after the crowd, who took cover. One old man sustained injuries on the forehead and was rushed to a local clinic.

After Msimanga’s departure, ANC Tshwane members, led by regional deputy chairperson Mapiti Matsena and other leaders in the council, arrived at the house.

Matsena denied that the move to disrupt Msimanga’s visit was orchestrated by the ANC.

“Members of the community are angry that this was purely a cable theft issue; it is not an issue of cable. This is an issue that was raised by our councillors that the highmast lights are not serviced. Our ward councillor said she reported this many times and nothing was done,” Matsena said.

Msimanga had said in the wake of the incident that the deaths were the result of theft of cables from the high-mast light.

Acting mayoral spokesperson Lindela Mashigo said Msimanga had planned a visit to the bereaved families to extend his heartfelt condolences. “The mayor was accosted by the mob which was clearly being used to push a political agenda at a time when politics was the furthest thing from the mayor’s mind,” Mashigo said.