A woman who spoke up against her ward councillor in Khayelitsha’s RR Section on community radio station last week, had her shack destroyed in retaliation by a group of residents on Monday.
Police arrested 13 people on Tuesday in connection with the incident. Each was released on R500 bail, after a brief appearance in the Khayelitsha Magistrate’s Court yesterday, where they were charged with malicious damage to property.
The residents were believed to have destroyed Mandisa Selane’s shack after she accused ward 89 councillor, Monde Nqulwana, of favouritism when it came to moving people out of RR informal settlement and into housing in Mfuleni.
Outside court yesterday about 100 residents from RR pooled money to bail out the accused.
One of the residents accused Selani of being “a witch” and told fellow residents that they must prevent her from returning to live in RR section.
SANCO committee member, Vuyani Mbhutye, said the conflict between Selane and other residents began when the Eyethu electrification project began.
Mbhutye said 70 people were moved out of RR Section to Mfuleni in order to make room for Eskom to erect poles.
“Mandisa was not one of those people, (but) instead of speaking with us and the councillor, she accused him of taking sides.”
He said residents then asked her to leave and when she refused to, they broke down her house.
Selane, a mother of three children, said she was one of the people who were supposed to have been moved but the ward councillor chose people he favoured and she was left behind.
“My mistake was to go to the media with it.”
She said after she spoke on radio Zibonele, Nqulwana called a community meeting which she attended.
Nqulwana informed gathered residents of the statements she made on air and the residents turned against her.
After another meeting on Friday last week she was told she had three days to leave the area.
“On Monday I heard them toyi-toying. I was feeding my children.When I went out the house to check, the residents had spades and hammers. They told me I know why they are here. I told one guy I haven’t got a place to stay but he grabbed and pushed me. I ran away. I left the children there.”
She went to the police station and they came to rescue her children.
She said Nqulwana was with the mob that destroyed her house.
However, Nqulwana denies he was there, but said he was aware that Selane was told to leave on Friday last week and had made a statement to the police.
The case was postponed until March. - West Cape News
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