Mahikeng cultural centre burns down

A cultural centre in Mahikeng has burned down amid violent protests targeting Premier Supra Mahumapelo.

A TimesLIVE reporter witnessed flames engulfing the centre.

One man died in the North West capital on Thursday evening during a car chase between police and protesters.

President Cyril Ramaphosa is due to visit the area on Friday. Ramaphosa on Thursday called for calm after two days of protests.

In a statement by his spokesperson Khusela Diko‚ Ramaphosa announced that he would be cutting short his trip to the United Kingdom.

“President Ramaphosa has called for calm and adherence to the rule of law in the province and has called on all aggrieved parties to express their grievances through peaceful means and engagement‚ rather than violence and anarchy‚” said Diko.

She said Ramaphosa called on law enforcement agencies to exercise maximum restraint duties.

The protests are also putting pressure on the province's health department.

Tebogo Lekgethwane‚ spokesperson for the department‚ said communities in and around Mahikeng could not access health facilities due to the protests.

“It is not safe for the nurses to go to work‚ they fear for their lives. Some of them simply stay at home. As a result we have had overcrowding at the Mahikeng provincial hospital‚” he said.

“There is also a challenge at the medical depot because the trucks that are supposed to bring medicine are unable to deliver it at the health facilities.”

Lekgethwane said the department had now allowed patients to by-pass the local clinics and come straight to the hospital‚ which caused overcrowding.

“We have also engaged the national Department of Health to direct deliveries of medical supplies straight to the medical facilities instead of taking it to the depot because it is difficult to move it from there. We have also given our clinics the go-ahead to engage suppliers of medication directly‚” he said.

He said some of the local clinics were forced to close while others opened at intervals.

Mahumapelo has faced a revolt after it emerged that state company Denel issued a bursary of around R1 million to his son. Mahumapelo on Thursday called for an end to the mass disruptions in the province.

“We call on the protesters to refrain from the violent disruptions and approach government for discussions on any issues which they would like to discuss‚” said Mahumapelo’s spokesperson Brian Setswambung.

- Additional reporting by Penwell Dlamini