The FF Plus is just as shocked as Northern Cape residents at the brutal attack on the well-known Mr Piet Els (86) and his partner, Ms Rikkie Alsemgeest (66), says Dr Wynand Boshoff, leader of the FF Plus in the Northern Cape.
Dr Boshoff says that even though the Northern Cape have not had as many farm attacks as some of the other provinces, this attack was a rude awakening for many people.
“Very little is known about the attack, except for the fact that it was characterised by excessive cruelty. According to media reports, the victims were burnt with an iron, beaten, tied up and robbed. The couple is currently recuperating in the hospital.
“This always raises the question of whether we are dealing with a ‘normal’ crime or a politically-motivated one. In this case, Mr Els’s status as a prominent landowner near Kimberly must be taken into account.
“Over the last few months, politicians in the Sol Plaatje Municipal Council repeatedly referred to Mr Els in the context of expropriation without compensation as a way of getting hold of land for low-cost housing developments.
“The particulars of the attack are not known, and it is regrettable that politicians may have possibly paved the way for such attacks by making irresponsible statements,” says Dr Boshoff.
*Statement issued by the FF Plus
