Municipal manager, Kebone Masange said ‘job sellers’ are tarnishing his reputation for their own gains.
Speaking at a press conference at the SAPS building on Friday, Mr Masange said criminals who used his name to con the community with promises of employment within the municipality, had angered and offended him.
Thus, he resolved to nab the so-called job seller, come hell or high water.
“They are killing me while I am still alive!” he exclaimed.
Summarising the events leading up to the arrest of one such alleged criminal, Mr Masange explained there was a malaise of con artists offering residents positions at the municipality in exchange for money.
In this particular instance, certain women were told to fax application forms to the MM’s office.
“They were charged R1 000 and had to send copies of their ID to a false number.”
Women who had come forward thus far, said the job seller had falsely informed them Mr Masange needed more cash from them before employment could be secured.
Through a friend of a friend, the MM himself came to hear of this scam.
With information received from this woman, Mr Masange determined the name given to the women did not correspond to any municipal employee, and began liaising with SAPS members personally.
“I called the police because my name had been used.”
Infuriated, Mr Masange arranged with scammed women and another contact to unearth a physical address of a home reportedly belonging to the job seller himself, and launched a vigilante sting operation.
First, the job seller was told to be at the house later in the day to receive payment for procuring employment.
Once the job seller entered the premises, Mr Masange’s personal security detail closed in and performed a citizen’s arrest, before taking him to the SAPS to be charged.
In this way, the job seller’s own greed was used against him.
“At the municipality, do not accept paying for a job even if it is offered by a councillor. Some are working as we speak, promising things and fooling residents.”
Mr Masange said the criminal further attempted to sweet talk his way out of handcuffs, by referring to him and the district council speaker as ‘comrades’ and ‘somlomo’ respectively.
The criminal deserved his sentence and the jail time, he added.
“I was so angry, I was scared I might have given him one or two claps. People are thinking I am a criminal now, because my name was used.”
With the job seller in custody, Mr Masange urged anyone who had been scammed in a similar manner to come forward and make a statement, to strengthen the case.
SAPS spokesman, Captain Shooz Magudulela said the suspect had been charged. within 48 hours of the arrest.
He also encouraged residents to come forward to either the municipality or the SAPS to root out employment corruption, or to contact Colonel Khawula on 034 314 6193.
“We would like to thank Mr Masange for helping enforce justice,” he concluded.
