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Politician says his life was in real danger at ANC

killed: Jimmy Mohlala
killed: Jimmy Mohlala

A TOP Mpumalanga politician believes if he had not left the ANC, he would be a dead man.

Sizile Ndlovu, who was ANC Bohlabela regional secretary between 2004 and 2006, believes he was targeted as he spoke out against the rot in the party.

"I strongly believe that had I not taken a decision to leave the ANC, I would not be doing this interview right now. I would be dead," said Ndlovu, who is now Congress of the People chairman in Mpumalanga, on Friday.

"On July 16 2006, an ANC meeting was sitting in Cottondale [in Bushbuckridge] when a group of men came in and attacked me. I was injured.

"Several days later, 19 bullets were sprayed into my house in Bushbuckridge . It was a miracle that a bullet never hit someone," said Ndlovu.

"It is known who attacked me but nothing was done. It is known which politicians are behind killings, but police have done nothing about it . There is no justice [for] political killings."

Ndlovu said he believed the attacks were politically motivated as, since he left the ANC, there had been no threat to his life.

"If those were personal attacks, they would have continued over the years. But because I left the ANC and joined Cope, I have not been under threat. I do not live in fear any more," he said.

The SA Communist Party in Mpumalanga has been calling for the release of a report on political killings for months.

On Friday, the party met national police commissioner Riah Phiyega at the police headquarters in Mbombela.

SACP provincial secretary Bonakele Majuba said the party was unhappy that these cases had been "frozen".

"We are, however, happy that the commissioner has informed us that there is a new task team appointed to look into these political killings," Majuba said.

He said Phiyega had given them a confusing response on political killings.

"Either the report does not exist or they are suppressing it. Apparently, the task team appointed by former police commissioner Bheki Cele failed to launch. It makes us wonder what report former police minister Nathi Mthethwa was going to give us last year," Majuba said.

Mbombela municipality speaker Jimmy Mohlala, shot dead in 2009, is one of the victims of suspected political killings.

mashabas@sowetan.co.za

 

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