WATCH: MKMVA veterans fire shots in celebration

MBOMBELA – Makhosini Yende (41) was sitting at home Tuesday night when he received a call from his brother in Vosloorus, in Johannesburg’s East Rand, telling him to switch his television to the news channel, eNCA. Showing on it was a video of people singing outside a house and shooting guns in the air.

In an exclusive interview with the news channel, presidential hopeful Dr Mathews Phosa alleged that the people in the video were Mpumalanga ANC chairman, David Mabuza’s private army. According to Phosa, the army had gone to branch general meetings (BGMs) where they would intimidate delegates who did not agree with Mabuza’s “unity” vote. He alleged that he recognised the people in the video to be from Mbombela and Barberton.

BGMs took place on October 22, whereas the video was shot and posted on social media on September 2 after a meeting of the uMkhonto we Sizwe Military Veterans’ Association (MKMVA) in Ermelo.

“My brother recognised our house and called me,” said Yende. When he watched the segment, Yende immediately identified the people in the video, the house as well as the occasion. The house in the video belongs to his parents, Dan and Zanele, who used to hide MK soldiers during the last days of South Africa’s political turmoil in 1990. In a show of continuous gratitude to the family for their sacrifice, MKMVA members continue to visit the home after their gatherings. One such gathering was early in September.

During the visit, members broke out in song and started firing what MKMVA secretary, Taylor Nsimbini, described as blank rounds. Yende took the video on his phone and posted it on his Facebook page as well as the Facebook group, ANC Loyal Members.

“I didn’t see any harm by putting it on there,” Yende said. He said he does not know why Phosa would misconstrue its meaning when the ANC hardly visits his mother and the house, yet use their images for political gain. Yende was speaking at a press conference hosted by the ANC Youth League (Ancyl) at the January “Che” Masilela House.

“When I heard that they would be hosting a press conference, I decided to come all the way from Ermelo so that I can clear the air and tell the truth of that video,” he said.

When asked why Phosa used the video to make allegations against Mabuza, Ronnie Malomane, his campaign manager, told Lowvelder he would not answer any questions until the Mpumalanga ANC had replied to his demands. When asked what these were, he replied that he could not tell the paper, as the matter would be sub judice as from Thursday when they hand over their court papers to the North Gauteng High Court.

When asked again what proof they had of the people in the video being Mabuza’s militia, Malomane said, “There’s a gross violation of the guidelines to manipulate the system.” In an attempt to distance themselves from the video, Malomane also questioned the validity of the video.

In a radio interview on Power FM on Wednesday, he did acknowledge, however, that the video was old and did not belong to the ANC. He refused to be drawn into why they chose to use it. ANC spokesman, Sasekani Manzini, said during the press conference that, as a member of the party, Phosa should have taken his grievances up with the BGM.

“The guidelines are clear. You must lodge your dispute at the branch and not the province, and it must be lodged wtihin 48 hours,” she said. When asked by this publication why he did not bring the matter up in his ward, Malomane said there are desputes in his ward.
“The disputes are still pending, so there is no way they could have agreed to it,”
he said.