A comrade kills another comrade: Fikile Mbalula speaks on KZN councilor killings
ANC secretary-general Fikile Mbalula has expressed his concern over violence which is stirred by greed.
This comes a few days after the murder of Mkhambathini Local Municipality ward 7 councillor, Mzwandile “Nganono” Shandu (40), who was gunned down in Umlazi on Wednesday after surviving three previous assassination attempts.
Shandu was driving with two other occupants in a car when he was shot multiple times. He had been the ward 7 councillor for the past seven years and chaired the Municipal Public Accounts Committee (Mpac) portfolio for the current term of office.
Speaking at the Inkosi Mhlabunzima Maphumulo lecture on Friday, Mbalula added that “a comrade kills another comrade”.
“They hire hitmen to kill for positions. Hitmen have money. They kill people for their positions,” said Mbalula.
He said on Friday you are a councillor and tomorrow you are dead because of your position.
“The reason behind these killings is greed and corruption. One needs to be assassinated so that the other gets to eat. Today [Friday] we are living in a democratic country. We should not forget that in this democracy we speak of, there was blood shed. It wasn’t easy. Even if we disagree politically, that doesn’t mean we should kill each other,” he added.
He added that the police must do their job.
Mbalula also said that the hitmen get caught but they want to find the people who give the orders to these hitmen.
Meanwhile Mkhambathini Municipality has denied claims that Shandu’s assassination is as a result of the municipality’s failure to provide security personnel for him.
“After the shooting incident occurred on August 20, 2023, a special council was convened by the speaker Themba Gwala where the incident was reported,” said Mkhambathini municipal manager Sanele Mngwengwe.
He added that during the meeting held on August 23, they decided to provide security to Shandu with immediate effect even though the threat analysis/assessment was not completed by the South African Police Services (SAPS).
This resolution was implemented by the office of the municipal manager and two bodyguards were allocated to Shandu. A letter to South African Police Services (SAPS) was sent requesting a threat assessment be conducted even though the security was already allocated to Shandu
“The service provider who was appointed by the municipality to provide the security to Shandu confirmed that they did meet with the councillor for the handover of all necessary tools and equipment for the security personnel and Shandu took a decision not to take the security [bodyguards] indicating to the service provider that he did not have a vehicle and he can’t use public transport while having bodyguards,” Mngwengwe added.
He added that this had not been communicated to the office of the municipal manager by the councillor.
“The municipality has received information that in the week of the assassination, Shandu was negotiating with the service provider, requesting them to give him the allocated bodyguards whom he had refused to take last month.
“While the service provider was in the process of informing the municipality and arranging the handover of the bodyguards, unfortunately Shandu was gunned down,” he added.
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