ANC shamelessly milking tragedy

OUR HEARTS go out to the families of the five children who died when the heavy ring from a high-mast light fell on them in Soshanguve, Tshwane. It would appear that attempted cable theft left the light unstable, and the ring fell on the children, aged six to 12, while they were underneath.

Considering the nature of the tragedy, we find it in poor taste that certain politicians have chosen to politicise the tragedy.

While claiming it “cannot attach blame until we have the full picture”, the ANC nonetheless suggests the DA-led administration is solely to blame.

The ANC points a finger at the DA “for not being more vigilant about this damaged light pole in particular, and service delivery in general”.

The party says it does not want to use the families’ anguish or community anger to drive sentiment.

Yet this is what it does in its statement and by blocking Tshwane mayor Solly Msimanga from visiting the families.

Clearly, if facilities in Soshanguve were better, it would be safer for children to play outside. Clearly, if we did not have cable theft, the mast might not have been compromised and, clearly, if it was reported to be dangerous, it should have been fixed.

We hope for a quick investigation by law enforcement agencies to establish what happened.

We welcome the call to escalate the matter to involve Gauteng Premier David Makhura. We also welcome the attention being paid to cable theft through the creation of special anti-cable theft units within the Tshwane and City of Joburg metros. This will go a long way in addressing the issue, which not only affects businesses, but has proved dangerous to human life.

But what we cannot condone are the actions of those who prevented Msimanga from sharing a compassionate word with the bereaved on behalf of the people of Tshwane.

We would like the mayor to give us the assurance that he will take the necessary steps to prevent similar tragedies in the future.