ActionSA threatens to take action on Lily Mine tragedy to recover the remains of three victims

The Star

12-05-2025

After years of inaction, ActionSA demands the retrieval of three miners' bodies, emphasising government accountability in a long-running tragedy.
After nine years of government inaction, ActionSA has delivered a firm ultimatum to Mineral and Petroleum Resources Minister Gwede Mantashe: 'Retrieve the bodies of the three Lily Mine workers buried since 2016 within 60 days – or the party will take on the mission themselves.'
ActionSA Chief Whip Athol Trollip has written to Mantashe, renewing the party's years-long call for the retrieval of the bodies of Solomon Nyirenda, Pretty Mkambule, and Yvonne Mnisi, in line with the minister's latest undertakings.
In a letter dated May 8, Trollip voiced his frustration over continued delays, reminding the minister that he had recently assured both him and party president Herman Mashaba during a meeting at the Inanda Club that the retrieval of the miners' remains was "imminent." Trollip questioned this promise, asking what 'imminent' truly means, given that nearly nine years have already passed.
He also mentioned that ActionSA has obtained permission from the Business Rescue Practitioners to enter the mine and collaborate with qualified rescue specialists to develop proposals and quotations for the retrieval of the container containing the victims' remains.
'We are prepared to give the minister 60 days to honour his promise. Should he fail to do so, ActionSA will have no choice but to proceed independently. Such a failure would further expose the government's continued insensitivity towards the plight of poor South Africans, particularly black citizens.
'Minister Mantashe has, on numerous occasions, promised that his department would facilitate the retrieval of the bodies. These undertakings have consistently been communicated to the affected families, who continue to wait in anguish.'
Last year, ActionSA leader Herman Mashaba suggested that the party might pursue legal action once again to secure the retrieval of the bodies from Lily Mine.
At an event in Barberton, Mpumalanga, held in 2024 to commemorate the deaths of the three mine workers, Mashaba revealed that he had sought legal advice on the next course of action against the mine.
'Of course, I can't reveal at this stage what our next step is. However, I have been speaking to the lawyers and we will be in a position to announce what legal steps we will be taking in the next few days,' Mashaba said.