Gumede speaks out on killings
ANC eThekwini chairperson says assassins cannot be allowed to do as they please after activist’s murder
ANC eThekwini chairperson Zandile Gumede has made a plea for KwaZuluNatal police commissioner LieutenantGeneral Nhlanhla Mkhwanazi to mobilise all available resources, especially the intelligence services, to put an end to the killings of political activists.
She made the call while attending the funeral of slain ward 14 activist Cassim Phiri who was gunned down after a branch meeting at Mariannhill Primary School on Tuesday evening. Phiri, the branch deputy chairperson, lived in the ward which includes Dassenhoek, Mariannhill, Winston Park, Klaarwater, KwaNdengezi and Thornwood.
It is alleged that two individuals arrived at the school claiming to be interested in joining the ANC, before opening fire on Phiri.
Gumede decried the killing, noting that Phiri had served the ANC Youth League and other party structures over the years and had great prospects for the future. “We have lost a young activist who was committed to serving the people and was set to be a great leader in the future,” said the former eThekwini mayor.
She reiterated the call made previously by the ANC for more resources to be allocated to ensure intelligence services could act to prevent attacks.
Several ANC leaders have been killed over the past year, leading to repeated calls for swift arrests.
There have also been suspicions that in some instances, the killings were intra-party related.
Gumede cited instances of killings of political figures dating back more than a decade, adding that these murders had not been solved.
“The police commissioner needs to ensure that people feel safe, it cannot be an instance where being an activist is about the survival of the fittest and killers roam as they please. Police need to arrest those responsible and those that are behind these killings. Right now as the ANC leadership, we are confused, and police and other agencies should play their role and put an end to this.”
KZN violence monitor Mary de Haas noted that killings were taking place on both sides of the political spectrum, with the ANC and IFP reporting incidents, pointing to the killing of Msinga Municipality councillor Siyanda Magubane as a case in point.
She said the latest killing was a further illustration of the weakness within the police’s crime intelligence unit.
“The fact is that there was a time when individuals from different political parties were killing each other, but over the years this has changed and there have been instances where party members were killing each other, so anything is possible with the latest killing.
“What this demonstrates, though, is a weak crime intelligence capacity in the police,” De Haas said. She added that this had been underlined by last July’s unrest in KZN and Gauteng.
The violence monitor cited a few reasons for the ineffective policing in KZN and South Africa, including:
♦ Lack of political will to effect reforms within the police.
♦ Constant political meddling in administrative matters within the police.
♦ Lack of adequate oversight from Parliament’s standing committee on police.
“Gumede is correct in calling for crime intelligence to step up to the task, but the problem is that the ineptness within the unit has been allowed to take hold over a long period and it is prevalent across all police units.”
She also questioned whether ructions within the ANC leading to the governing party’s national elective conference at the end of the year were also at play.
“I am not saying this is the case, but it is one of the areas that need to be factored in when analysing the circumstances. Importantly, some changes are needed within the police so that arrests can be made and lead to the prosecution of the killers and the masterminds.”
University of KwaZulu-Natal academic and political analyst Dr Fikile Vilakazi said the killings revealed the country’s violent past and a lack of public trust in the police.
“When you have cases where suspects are arrested, cases do not go to trial and people walk free, the public just loses that hope and trust in law-enforcement agencies.” She said dealing with violence should no longer be left with political parties, but should involve other organs of society.
Responding to the calls for police to step up, police ministry spokesperson Lirandzu Themba said every effort was being made to tackle politically related attacks.
She added that the task team on political killings was making significant progress.
“Earlier this year we released the statistics which showed that the team had a success rate of nearly 80% of arrests and convictions. Therefore it is not true that nothing is being done.”