SEBOKENG.- It was embarrassing to see a person whose husband the Saul Tsotetsi Sports Complex is named after h being treated like a “nobody” during the Netball World Cup Trophy Tour hosted at the venue (Saul Tsotetsi Sports Complex in Zone 14, Sebokeng) last week.

Mme ma Tsotetsi who also happens to be the former Emfuleni Local Municipality (ELM) Mayor had to beg literally for entrance because she was told she didn’t have VIP’s accreditation card. But really, whoever invited her could have ensured that they gave the security personnel at the gate a message to open for a person who would introduce/identify herself as Dikeledi Tsotetsi.

Those at the gate caused unnecessary drama even when some of the Emfuleni Local Municipality (ELM) officials tried to intervene, but they still refused to let her. It was embarrassing to see Mme ma Tsotetsi reduced to “nobody” in front of some political leaders.

Shame on you!

Yours truly TOUCHLINE tried to intervene but with no success. To make it worse, Mme ma Tsotetsi was invited to speak at the event but was reduced to nothing by those at the gate. They told her she must use the other side of the entrance just because she didn’t have a VIP card.

How so?

This is despite the fact that she explained why she was there and why she was supposed to use that entrance but with no luck. The fact of the matter is that it is a problem when we hire people who don’t know the political leaders in their community. TOUCHLINE doubts whether those people at the game were from Sedibeng because clearly, they had no clue who Mme ma Tsotetsi was as she stood there embarrassed as some officials try to plead with the security personnel at the gate to let her in.

TOUCHLINE thought that when the event started somebody would apologize to Mme ma Tsotetsi for what happened earlier, but No, it was business as usual as nothing happened. There is no longer respect for the people who contributed to our struggle when they are no longer serving at the highest level.

Typical of Vaal people, they treat their own like pieces of…”it”.

TOUCHLINE challenges the powers that be to get to the bottom of this. Whoever invited Mme ma Tsotetsi could have made sure she gets her VIP Card prior to the event or stood at the gate to welcome her seeing that to get access to the VIP entrance one must have an accreditation card.

I took some pictures of this incident to show how we treat our own in our community. In fact, even the media had to run around looking for media accreditations. This journalist was also denied entry at the same entrance as Mme ma Tsotetsi because I didn’t have a media accreditation card. Even when I produced my work press card, still it was not enough.

I was told, I must go to use the other entrance which is used by the public even when I tried to explain myself just like Mme ma Tsotetsi with no luck.

This region is going to the dogs and it seems as if no one cares anymore.