Tragic deaths of children, abuse and rape plagued some families in Mamelodi in 2022.
The following stories made headlines in Mamelodi:
Angry residents willing to bail out rape-accused pastor:
Angry Newtown informal settlement residents threatened to post bail for a local pastor accused of raping a 13-year-old girl, so they can “deal with him” themselves.
The residents said they were willing to dig into their own pockets to raise bail for the accused.
Mamelodi East police spokesperson Constable Lethabo Mashiloane said the police strongly condemned the threat of vigilantism and discouraged the community from taking the law into their own hands.
It is alleged that the 37-year-old pastor had raped the girl repeatedly since she was 10 years old.
Athalia Mapea of Ontekane Mogau children’s home said the pastor is well-known to the community and a close friend of the victim’s family.
It is alleged that the victim opened up to a friend. The pastor allegedly had threatened to kill both her parents should she tell them.
The suspect was arrested on September 3.
“Today we are here to make sure that the court does not grant him bail, but should the court grant him bail, the community is ready to post the bail in order to deal with the accused permanently,” she said.
No bail for Mamelodi man accused of slitting girlfriend’s eight-year-old’s throat:
A 31-year-old man, who allegedly cut the throat of his girlfriend’s eight-year-old daughter “execution-style” on April 24 in Mamelodi, is still in police custody as charges piled up against him.
The girl survived the attack and is back with her family recovering.
On the day of the incident, it was believed that the accused and the child’s mother argued outside her homestead in Khutsong before she left for a carwash.
It is alleged that the accused went inside the home, took a knife and dragged the minor, who was playing outside, to the back of the house and slit her throat.
The accused handed himself over to the police on April 25 after a brief search for him.
He is facing attempted murder charge plus another gender-based violence charge from 2019.
Woman in a critical condition after being doused with petrol and set alight:
Mamelodi police arrested three people after a 36-year-old woman was left fighting for her life following a brutal arson attack in September.
Maria Mokwena of Skierlik informal settlement near Heatherly cemetery, was doused with petrol and set alight allegedly by the three.
Mamelodi police spokesperson, Constable Lethabo Mashiloane confirmed the three were arrested on attempted murder charges on October 19.
“Their arrest came after they had been traced for weeks. They were arrested in different locations following the extensive search.”
Let’s put an end to GBV:
Thousands of pamphlets were distributed at a mall in Mamelodi when the National Prosecution Authority kicked off a campaign against gender-based violence together with police and the local CPF.
Senior prosecutor Anne-Marie Bendeman said: “The important thing is to break the silence and condemn the violence against women, so that we can put an end to it.
Victims of gender-based violence must be made aware of the resources available to help them and where to go for help.
Many victims, mostly women, do not want to open cases because they are told that if they open a case, the boyfriend or husband will lose his job.”
The accused are mostly bread winners.
The public and victims were also introduced to Nicro.
“Nicro has a programme called the intimate partner domestic violence programme, which is highly effective,” said Bendeman.
“The programme consists of 10 sessions that must be attended by the accused where he is educated on how to contain and control his temper.”
Mamelodi Fire Station fully operational to serve
Tshwane emergency services (EMS) department announced that Mamelodi and Mabopane fire stations are fully operational to serve their respective communities.
MMC for community safety, Ald Grandi Theunissen said the Mamelodi fire station responded to 19 emergencies in September, since September 6.
The station is manned by 27 firefighters, three commanders and six emergency medical care technicians who operate in three shifts.
Four emergency vehicles are used by the station, namely an engine pumper, a water tanker, a response vehicle and a rapid intervention vehicle.
It it also a backup station to Rayton, Bronkhorstspruit, Silverton and Erasmuskloof fire stations.
Top celebrities perform in Mamelodi as social justice organisation turns 5:
Civil rights movement, #NotInMyName celebrated its fifth year of fighting for social justice, upliftment, empowerment and to protect the community.
President Siyabulela Jentile described the five years as “a difficult and painful experience”.
“Along the way, we lost one of our comrades to a bullet. Lethabo Nkoana (25) was shot dead during a scuffle that erupted at a political gathering at the Temba stadium in Hammanskraal in November 2019,” he said.
Nkoana was instrumental in the formation of the #NotInMyName Bafundi (educational) programme in Mamelodi. More than 93 000 people have benefited from its food parcel donation programme.
“We have attended hundreds of court cases in support of victims of gender-based violence,” Jentile said.
He said the next phase would be guided by gender equality, social relief of the distressed, education and development.
“We will continue to commit ourselves to strengthen the foundation of South Africa’s democracy by assisting the citizens to understand the power that they possess in the Constitution.”
He said their mandate was inspired by four essential principles of social justice: human rights, access, participation and equity.
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