ActionSA threatens to take action on Lily Mine tragedy to recover the remains of three victims
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.
Although the Mbombela Magistrate's Court ruled in October 2023 that those involved should face criminal charges, no one has been held accountable to date. This continued inaction has only intensified the grief of the victims' families and sparked growing public outrage over the government's response to the tragedy.
This prompted Mashaba to express the party's disappointment with the National Prosecuting Authority NPA for failing to pursue criminal charges against those responsible.
'In this regard, ActionSA remains extremely disappointed that the NPA in Mpumalanga has failed to decide whether it will criminally prosecute those liable for the Lily Mine tragedy of February 2016, despite promising to do so by the end of January 2024. It is the failure of our prosecuting authority to prosecute those guilty of a crime that contributes to the rise of lawlessness in South Africa.'
The Star
masabata.mkwananzi@inl.co.za
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