Ehlanzeni ANC Women’s League leader attacked with sjambok
The incident happened during a consultative meeting at a school. An ANC leader is subsequently facing common assault charges.
The Mpumalanga SAPS is investigating a common assault case against an ANC leader accused of attacking an ANC Women’s League (ANCWL) leader with a sjambok on Wednesday, February 5.
The suspect is an ANC branch secretary in the Hazyview area, and an official in the provincial Department of Community Safety, Security and Liaison in Mbombela.
On the day in question, the suspect, whose identity is known to Lowveld Media, went to a school in Hazyview where he found the victim with some other people at the gate. “The Ehlanzeni ANCWL had deployed me to the school where a meeting with other league members was supposed to take place. The man arrived while I was still at the gate and ordered me not to set foot inside the school premises where the meeting was to be held,” said the victim.
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She said when she enquired why she was being barred from the school premises, the man became furious. “He started fuming and shouting that I did not know him very well. He then rushed to his car and took out a sjambok. He ran back towards me in an apparent gesture of wanting to beat me. I ran for my life. He tried to whip me, but missed. I got into my car and drove away from the scene as fast as I could, but he managed to slash at the car with his sjambok.”
She reported the matter to the Hazyview Police Station. The provincial police spokesperson, Lieutenant Colonel Jabu Ndubane, confirmed that a common assault case was opened against the suspect. “He was called to the police station and a warning statement was written. The docket has been handed over to the prosecutor for a decision on whether to prosecute or not,” said Ndubane.
Meanwhile, the Ehlanzeni ANC’s secretary, Folas Sibuyi, confirmed knowledge of the incident and vowed to look into it. “I can confirm that I know about the incident, because the victim has written a letter directly to me. This office is fully against gender-based violence and will conduct internal investigations in order to get to the bottom of this issue,” said Sibuyi.
