Bail hearing postponed for WSU manager accused of student's murder
The EFF's Ncedo Kolanisi, speaking outside the court on behalf of Mbolekwa's family, said: 'The findings of the autopsy report were that the bullets hit the back through the torso, so it tells you that Mbolekwa was retreating when he was shot.'
The incident sent shockwaves around the country, raising concerns about the use of force on university campuses and prompting calls for reform in protest management.
GOOD party national youth chairperson Kaden Arguile said the situation at WSU underscores the urgent need for institutions to rethink their approach to student protests.
'A decade has passed since the #FeesMustFall movement gripped the nation, yet many institutions still lack clear, compassionate and effective protocols to protect student voices and campus safety. While private security has a role in ensuring safety, they are not law enforcement — nor should they act as such,' he said.
'Universities are not battlegrounds. They are spaces for education, critical thinking and engagement. The absence of open communication between university leadership, student representatives and security personnel is a dangerous gap that must be addressed as a matter of urgency.'
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IOL News
3 hours ago
- IOL News
MKP, EFF Unity: Is It Time for Another Cup of Tea?
MKP President Jacob Zuma and EFF CIC Julius Malema enjoying a cup of tea at a meeting held in Nkandla on February 5, 2021. Instead of challenging the dominance of the GNU, the EFF and the MK have become entangled in a web of personal and political rivalry, mistrust, and internal strife, says the writer. Image: EFF/Twitter Kim Heller The Economic Freedom Fighters (EFF) and uMkhonto weSizwe (MK) dare not betray their revolutionary mission as the ANC has done. The EFF and MK, together with smaller black progressive parties, could well be the last hope for economic liberation and historical justice in South Africa. The ANC government, once the dream catcher for black South Africans, has failed to end the dark nightmare of structural racism, inequality and economic exclusion. The majority of South Africa's people are desperate. The dream of liberation and justice cannot be deferred yet again, lest it is lost forever. The ever-uncertain gambit of politics saw the ANC lose its majority in the 2024 elections. It was a well-deserved loss, for the ruling party has failed and forsaken the masses. In The Art of War, Sun Tzu writes about the need to seize the moment and teaches that amid chaos lies opportunities. EFF and MK have yet to seize the moment. If they do not do so, the cries of ordinary people seeking salvation from their daily battles against joblessness, landlessness, and poverty will remain unanswered, and the country could tumble furiously towards total collapse. The electoral defeat was no wake-up call for the ANC. In its political slumber, it has been desperate to market the GNU as a win for democracy rather than as an unprecedented loss for the ANC and economic liberation. Progressive black parties need to find a common cause and expose the fatal fault lines of the GNU, its uneasy mesh of irreconcilable ideological contradictions and backward agenda. But instead of challenging the dominance of the GNU, the EFF and the MK have become entangled in a web of personal and political rivalry, mistrust, and internal strife. This damages prospects for tactical and strategic unity. There is nothing revolutionary in personal and political upmanship. Both the EFF and the MK are astute enough to know that liberation is not a competitive sport, the exclusive trademark of political leaders, or the province of any political party. In his book, One Azania, One Nation, Black consciousness scholar Neville Alexander emphasises how joint tactical campaigns and collaboration do not constitute ideological surrender, fusion, or compromise. The EFF demonstrated this in their compact with the DA in Gauteng in 2015. It utilised this tactical relationship to advance pro-black, pro-poor budgets and outcomes, as well as insourcing and service delivery to underserviced areas. It is not too late for tactical engagement and programmes between the EFF, MK and other progressive forces. The PAC may be tempted to reevaluate whether its easy acquiescence with right-wing partners within the GNU is not irrevocably tarnishing the impeccable legacy of Robert Sobukwe or damaging its future revolutionary wingspan. Video Player is loading. Play Video Play Unmute Current Time 0:00 / Duration -:- Loaded : 0% Stream Type LIVE Seek to live, currently behind live LIVE Remaining Time - 0:00 This is a modal window. Beginning of dialog window. Escape will cancel and close the window. Text Color White Black Red Green Blue Yellow Magenta Cyan Transparency Opaque Semi-Transparent Background Color Black White Red Green Blue Yellow Magenta Cyan Transparency Opaque Semi-Transparent Transparent Window Color Black White Red Green Blue Yellow Magenta Cyan Transparency Transparent Semi-Transparent Opaque Font Size 50% 75% 100% 125% 150% 175% 200% 300% 400% Text Edge Style None Raised Depressed Uniform Dropshadow Font Family Proportional Sans-Serif Monospace Sans-Serif Proportional Serif Monospace Serif Casual Script Small Caps Reset restore all settings to the default values Done Close Modal Dialog End of dialog window. Advertisement Next Stay Close ✕ The willingness of progressive forces to work in unison at this moment, irrespective of longer-term strategic differences, will determine a new matrix of political power in South Africa for years to come. It will also impact on their fates and fortunes. The EFF is still a work in progress. The EFF's electoral blow, which saw the party dip to just 9.5% of the national vote has prompted introspection. The departure of Deputy President, Floyd Shivambu cannot continue to overshadow or cloud the EFF's focus on organisational recalibration. Hackneyed parliamentary objections and walkouts are obscuring the solid and steady work executed by the party in Parliaments and legislatures across the country. This includes EFF's potent challenge of the paralysing VAT increases and the party's legal challenge to the fuel increase which represent material wins for ordinary South Africans. Similarly, the recent insourcing of public service workers in Tshwane is a meaningful victory. It is on the crest of its ability to deliver a better life for ordinary people that the EFF will recover from its electoral and leadership losses. The fortunes of the MK are difficult to predict. The Zuma factor was completely underestimated. Great expectations for the MK party after its strong birth cry and outstanding electoral performance have tempered due to a lack of organisational cohesion and a disruptive gamble of musical chairs. The party needs to stabilise and showcase its leadership pedigree and mettle in Parliament and solidify its vision for the future if it wants to be a party of gravitas rather than grievance. The ambiguity of its dual ANC-MK membership provision creates confusion and uncertainty and may scare off progressive alliances and voters. Time is running out. Political leaders must never forget that the revolution belongs to the people and that political parties and leaders are merely servants. Petty party-political rivalries must never be placed ahead of the grand mission for economic justice and transformation. A new era of politics is upon us. Whether the progressive forces can seize this moment and boldly influence the future trajectory of power relations in South Africa is in their hands. To join hands on critical tactical projects which will strengthen democracy, raise the voice for the voiceless in Parliament and benefit the people of South Africa is the very least we should expect of progressive politicians. Both the EFF and the MK have been game-changers and kingmakers in South African politics. They must now lead the charge in reviving hope and radical focus, disrupting neoliberal hegemony and stopping the master plan of the DA to entrench its structural power over the plains of South Africa. For now, a tactical pact is necessary to help address the unfinished business of Black liberation. When the love of the people trumps personal or political hatred or dispute, everyone wins. * Kim Heller is a political analyst and author of No White Lies: Black Politics and White Power in South Africa. ** The views expressed do not necessarily reflect the views of IOL, Independent Media or The African.
Daily Maverick
a day ago
- Daily Maverick
ANC canters to victory in two Mpumalanga wards, MK beats faltering EFF to second place
The ANC cruised to victory in the two Thembisile Hani by-elections in Mpumalanga in the latest round of by-elections. It was well up on its 2021 showing. The uMkhonto Wesizwe party beat the EFF to second place as the latter fell sharply in both wards. Thembisile Hani, Nkangala, Mpumalanga Both by-elections took place in the Thembisile Hani municipality, which borders Gauteng and Limpopo. It borders more of Gauteng and Limpopo than it does other municipalities in Mpumalanga, and sits in the northwestern corner of the province in the former KwaNdebele homeland. The municipality is linked to the nation's capital via the R573, the Moloto Road. Southern Ndebele is the most widely spoken language in the municipality. The seat of power is Ekukhanyeni, formerly Kwaggafontein. Bafana Bafana player Mandla Masango hails from Ekukhanyeni. National First Division soccer team Casric Stars ply their trade in this municipality. Thembisile Hani forms part of the Nkangala District. Other key towns in the district are Emalahleni, Middelburg and Siyabuswa. Ward 18 (Vezubuhle Thokozani) Thembisile Hani: ANC 73% (65% PR*) MK 15% EFF 9% (17% PR) Ingubo 1% (7% PR) Labour 1% The setting: Vezubuhle and Thokozani lie above the R573 Moloto Road. The ward is between the KwaMhlanga Crossroads Shopping Centre and Ekukhanyeni. The 2021 local government elections: The ANC won every voting district by a comfortable margin. The EFF finished second in every district. A local party, Ingubo Yeskethu (Ingubo), finished third, slightly ahead of the DA which obtained 5% on the proportional representation (PR) ballot. The ANC won 61% on the ward ballot, followed by the EFF on 15%. An independent candidate came third with 7%. Ingubo was just in front of the DA, with both parties taking 5%. The ANC won 40 out of the 62 seats in the council, winning 30 of the 32 wards. The only wards not won by the party were taken by two independents. The EFF was second with 12. The 2024 provincial elections: The ANC won 58% of the vote in the voting districts in this ward. The EFF was second with 17% – it came second in all voting districts. The DA was third with 8%, beating the uMkhonto Wesizwe (MK) party in all districts bar one. MK was fourth with 6% as it took votes from the ANC. The by-election: The ward councillor died. The ANC won close to three-quarters of the vote, winning more than 80% in half of the districts and more than 90% in one district. The ANC was only pushed in one of the six districts, in the most vote-rich part of the ward, Somsuswa Secondary School in Thokozani. Here its vote share declined from 69% to 57%. MK bagged 30% of the vote in this district. This is also where the EFF did best, obtaining 12%, slightly down from 14% in 2021. MK finished second in half of the voting districts, while the EFF was second in the other half. The key difference was the Somususwa Secondary School where the MK beat the EFF by 120 votes. In the final tally, MK beat the EFF by 122 votes. Ingubo's support totally collapsed in the by-election. Poll: 33% (37%) Ward 31 (Ekukhanyeni South) Thembisile Hani: ANC 70% (59%) MK 16% EFF 11% (30%) AIPO 2% (4%) Labour 1% Ingubo 1% The setting: Ekukhanyeni is the seat of power in Thembisile Hani. Ward 31 is at the southern tip of Ekukhanyeni, in the areas known as Kwaggafontein D and Kwaggafontein E. The 2021 local government election: The ANC came close to beating the EFF by two votes to one. The EFF performed better in Ward 31 than Ward 18. It won more than 40% of the vote at the vote-rich Thuthukani Primary School in Kwaggafontein E. A regional party, the African Independent People's Organization (AIPO), came third with 4%. The 2024 provincial elections: The ANC won 58% of the vote in the voting districts in this ward as well. The EFF came second with 24%. The EFF was second in all voting districts. The DA edged MK for third place, with both parties getting 4%. AIPO garnered only 1% support in the ward. The by-election: The poll was held after the ward councillor died. The ANC cantered home, exhibiting impressive growth. It won more than 85% of the vote in two of the four voting districts. It beat MK by 1,186 votes. MK beat the EFF for second place by 111 votes. As per Ward 18, both parties finished runners-up in two districts each. MK did best at Sinetjhudu Primary School in Kwaggafontein D with a 29% vote haul. This is the most-populous district in the ward. Here the difference between MK and the EFF was 139 votes. AIPO lost half of its percentage support in the ward compared with the 2021 local government election. Joseph Mathunjwa's Labour Party continues to find it tough beyond the electoral mining belt map. After a poor showing in a recent Free State by-election, the party received only 1% support each in the two Thembisile Hani by-elections. The next by-election will take place on 18 June when the ANC will defend another seat in Mpumalanga, in a township in Sabie in the Thaba Chweu municipality on the Panorama Route. After this strong showing by the ANC, the party will make the 250km-plus journey from Ekukhanyeni to Sabie with renewed vigor and confidence. DM
IOL News
a day ago
- IOL News
The fallout from Trump's Afrikaner project on Ramaphosa's National Dialogue agenda
President Cyril Ramaphosa has defended BEE as an engine of growth. Image: GCIS President Cyril Ramaphosa's upcoming national dialogue aims to tackle critical issues facing the country, including the divisions sparked by US President Donald Trump's controversial offer of resettlement to white Afrikaners, alongside pressing concerns regarding unemployment and poor governance. On Wednesday, Ramaphosa announced the appointment of an 'eminent persons group,' comprising 31 South Africans, who will spearhead the National Dialogue scheduled for August 15. One of the eminent persons, who requested anonymity, said the dialogue can be seen as a response to concerns, aiming to address the country's challenges and promote national building. 'The issue should definitely come up, although everybody has a choice to leave the country. "We are way beyond the colour lines now and should focus on nation building with the people who are in the country, instead of dwelling in the past. 'Sure, it's a bone of contention but we do have bigger problems," she said. However, not all are on board with Ramaphosa's dialogue initiative. The uMkhonto weSizwe Party has rejected the dialogue as an "elitist farce," saying it is a "staged theatre for the political elite". In a statement its spokesperson, Nhlamulo Ndhlela, asked why there were no ordinary South Africans, such as shack dwellers, represented? 'The so-called Eminent Persons Group, handpicked by the very same ruling class responsible for mass unemployment, deepening poverty, collapsing infrastructure and the ongoing betrayal of the Freedom Charter, is a mockery of the suffering endured daily by millions of destitute and despondent South African,' Ndhlela wrote. The EFF has also expressed skepticism, questioning the government's motives and the selection process for the Eminent Persons Group. "The challenges Ramaphosa's National Dialogue seek to address are not a product of triumph of human sacrifice against evil, which require collective national reconstruction, but are a product of man-made destruction and corruption of which he and the party he leads have been at the centre of," the EFF said in a statement. The DA's national spokesperson, Willie Aucamp, welcomed the National Dialogue saying his party would embrace the opportunity. 'I think it's high time that we as a nation get together and discuss collectively what we see as a road forward for this country,' he said. Build One South Africa (BOSA) described the announcement as a positive and necessary step forward for the country at a time of great political uncertainty, public anxiety, and economic malaise. The GOOD Party's general secretary Brett Herron said it was long overdue as the wait had been frustrating.
