No peace in the valley

From the chambers of parliament to the fishing villages of Cape Town’s southern peninsula, the ANC is being accused of meddling with the law.

Suspected vigilante killer and ANC member Lubabalo Vellem says his bail agreement, which bars him from his home township of Masiphumelele, was set up by his rivals in the local ANC.

The township is at boiling point and the situation in Masiphumelele “threatens the whole valley”, including Noordhoek, Fish Hoek and Kommetjie, according to DA ward councillor Felicity Purchase.

Two weeks ago two people were shot by taxi drivers who were allegedly angry that supporters of Vellem were stopping people from going to work, affecting their business.

The shootings happened as community members were rallying support for a court case at which Vellem appealed unsuccessfully for his bail conditions to be amended.

Last week riot police fired rubber bullets to stop taxi drivers from beating 23-year-old Landiswa Mgwali, who was walking to work as part of a community-wide taxi boycott.

Vellem is not allowed back into Masiphumelele as part of his bail conditions. The prosecutor opposed bail, saying witnesses could be in danger and the violence would continue if Vellem was released.

Last year nine people were killed, some burnt to death, and two state vehicles destroyed in riots in Masiphumelele over a lack of police action after the rape and murder of 14-year-old Amani Pula.

Kommetjie resident and addiction counsellor Justin Villiers said inequality along racial lines, a drug epidemic and a lack of police services had resulted in “lawlessness”, and equated it to living in a “war zone”.

“Recently it’s become crazy. I’ve stopped going on [community watch] WhatsApp groups and on the radio, it’s crazy.

“I think in time it will spill over and become more violent. You’ve got the whites living in the neighbourhoods with the nice houses, the coloureds in a ghetto and the blacks in the township,” he said.

Vellem accused the local ANC branch chairman, Tshepo Moletsane, of influencing his lawyer to thwart his attempt to be elected as ward councillor. He has since changed lawyers.

Moletsane organised a lawyer for Vellem and two others accused of murder but says he never gave the lawyer any instructions.

“There was an allegation that made it look like I have an influence on [the lawyer] that he must delay the process up until local government elections because other people say maybe I want to be the candidate,” 
said Moletsane.

He said Vellem had made reckless statements in court.

“Remember, as ANC we respect the judiciary and under no circumstances can we influence the role of the judiciary, we have no right to do so, that was a very reckless statement,” said Moletsane.

Vellem said the lawyer had not consulted him before going to court, and decided on bail conditions that were against his interests.

“They know that for me not to be in Masi, I don’t stand a chance because I can’t be the ward councillor of some place that I’m not staying in,” he said.

“[The community] want to know what’s really going on. Why is Lubabalo the only person that is kicked out of Masi but there are two other accused where the charges are the same?”

Photos on Facebook show Vellem wearing an EFF overall at one of the party’s events, and Moletsane accused him of threatening to join the EFF or the DA if he was not chosen as an ANC candidate.

Vellem denied this, saying Masiphumelele’s problems were bigger than parties and individuals.

Purchase said that although Masiphumelele had the numbers to take the ward, the township was deeply divided, threatening the peace of all 37000 people in Ward 69.

Despite a peace agreement reached last week, the situation in Masi had a sinister side to it. “There is something else playing out here but I don’t know what it is. And it is threatening the whole valley,” she said.