At 22h00 on the night of 29 July a group of men claiming to be police arrested and allegedly assaulted whistleblower Thabiso Zulu at a family member’s home near Pietermaritzburg. These men, who did not identify themselves, were later found to be members of a Public Order Police unit. Thabiso’s arrest appears to be connected to protests that took place in Copesville on Monday 27 July.
During these protests police allegedly shot several residents in the back. Thabiso’s brother was also arrested earlier this week on a range of highly questionable charges. Other arrests of community members for ‘breaking the curfew’ have allegedly been made where the ‘accused’ were allegedly arrested before the 21h00 cut-off time.
It appears Thabiso has not yet received medical attention despite having allegedly been very badly beaten.
His phone, which was allegedly confiscated by the arresting officers, has not yet been handed over to the officer investigating Thabiso’s October 2019 attempted murder, or to family members for safekeeping, despite the risk this poses to the case.
According to TimesLive, the police have not yet officially acknowledged his arrest. He has received bail but the charges against him – which appear to be “incitement to commit violence” – still stand.
Mountain Rise Police Station are apparently handling the docket and have since claimed detectives have sworn statements implicating Thabsio which – in today’s climate of politically motivated policing –
proves nothing.
These are alarming events for many reasons.
After blowing the whistle on government and ANC corruption in before the Moerane Commission of Inquiry into the underlying causes of KZN’s political killings, Thabiso survived an assassination attempt on 26 October 2018. At the time, Mountain Rise police officers failed to collect the myriad spent cartridges found at the scene, many of which showed that automatic rifles had been used in Thabiso’s attack. In fact, the police only visited the crime scene AFTER evidence had been trampled into the dirt by reporters who showed more interest in following up the matter than the SAPS.
In a press statement released a month after the shooting Thabiso wrote: “I now know that I was shot through an alliance of looters from Harry Gwala and Umsunduzi. I also know that the hit was partly funded by political gangsters from Harry Gwala who were assisting those who are under investigation at Umsunduzi. Those who partly funded the hit are linked to Sindiso Magaqa’s case (Harry Gwala), and those under investigation at Umsunduzi municipality.”
“Strangely, 72 hours after we (Thabiso and a witness) survived an attempt on our lives, (the witness) was charged by Umsunduzi Municipality on concocted charges. These are ploys of intimidation by
political gangsters who are fearing prisons because of their looting.”
“Will I be killed, will I be jailed or something else?” Thabiso wrote at the time.
Thabiso’s recent arrest and assault is the culmination of arguably the most blatant example of political use and abuse of the criminal justice system since the end of apartheid. But while his track record
speaks for itself, more recent events speak volumes more.
For years the community of Copesville have protested their dissatisfaction with local political leadership amid widespread allegations of corruption, particularly relating to a missing R5m meant for housing in which local councilors, municipal officials and a former municipal manager are allegedly implicated.
Copesville’s ward 29 councillor, Sphamandla Madlala, many claim, enjoys a corrupt relationship with Mountain Rise Police officers, particularly a certain colonel in charge of visible policing as well
as a member of the provincial tracking unit, whom it is alleged, are used to take action against Madlala’s detractors. Their names are known.
There have also been allegations that Madlala enjoyed the support of Msunduzi’s former deputy mayor and relative of former president Jacob Zuma, who has been widely implicated in corruption within the municipality. A private security company previously (possibly still) hired by the municipality allegedly provided guards for Madlala’s home while their personnel occasionally rode shotgun for him as personal bodyguards.
Madlala, sources claim, is also closely connected to the powerful Gcaba family as well as a private security company that provides protection to the Gcaba’s taxi empire. There are hitmen in this mix
and unlicensed firearms (including automatic rifles) which were allegedly ferried to and from ANC meetings in Madlala’s vehicle.
All of which was reported to senior provincial police members in April 2019. Names, addresses, identity numbers, and other useful information were provided that could have led to prosecutions if it had been properly investigated.
But nothing happened.
Not with the allegations of housing corruption, nor the allegations against Madlala and his cronies. And the Msunduzi municipality was since plundered into the ground.
Now, over a year later, the police suddenly see fit to start rounding up members of the community who are understandably frustrated at their lot and lack of action by the authorities, and a whistleblower – a man who has risked his life countless times to rid our country of its toxic rot and who has repeatedly been refused protection by our criminal justice system.
Shame on our perverted criminal justice system. Shame on police prostitutes who serve on political payrolls and protect criminals instead of the public. Shame on the people who remain silent about all
this – inside and outside of the state. Shame on the police who allegedly beat Thabiso and arrested his brother and community members on trumped up, very obviously politically motivated charges.
We demand the police immediately withdraw their bogus charges and instead arrest all officers involved in the detention and assault of Thabiso and fellow Copesville community members and that these so-called police are charged with, amongst other crimes, defeating the ends of justice. Then arrest their political handlers.
And if anything should happen to Thabiso, we will know where to point fingers.
Vanessa Burger is an Independent Community Activist for Human Rights and Social Justice