Thozi Manyisana

Thozi Manyisana

A burglary at the Eastern Cape legislature in which important documents were stolen might have been caused by a security lapse.

The thieves raided a safe, removing a computer hard-drive containing job appointment details and also a cellphone.

VIP, the protection unit responsible for the security of the legislature, are regarding the theft as an inside job.

VIP protection services head Abraham Goss initially refused to speak about the matter because no formal complaint had been made.

But Goss later asked Sowetan to take him to the burglarised office where police were busy fingerprinting and collecting evidence.

Goss was told that the doors leading into the office had not been broken, indicating that they might not have been locked by the legislature caretaker.

"We will investigate why only one office was targeted . there are plenty of other offices [there]."

The fact that there is no fence around the legislature building could also have contributed to the burglary.

Exit doors were also removed because of renovations, a source at VIP said.

The legislature head of safety and security, Thembekile Mzantsi, said he had written to Goss to request a report on the burglary.

He claimed the door to the office appeared to have been bored with a grinder because the lock had been removed leaving a hole.

Mzantsi said it appeared as if the thief was someone who had "clear intentions", adding that this case was similar to other break-ins that had occurred in the institution over the past years.

Last year's appointment letters and a computer hard-drive with data about appointments were stolen.

The National Education, Health and Allied Workers Union said the burglary might have been the work of people who were interested in getting jobs in the legislature.