KZN Cogta offers R100,000 reward for info on arsonists

The KwaZulu-Natal department for cooperative governance and traditional affairs (Cogta) is offering a R100,000 reward for information leading to the arrest of the arsonists who torched its offices in Durban on Thursday morning.

“A preliminary assessment of the damages to the park homes that have been burned to the ground is in excess of R17m."

"The figure does not include valuable files and critical documents. Such wanton destruction of government property cannot go unpunished. We will see to it that the perpetrators are brought to book," said Cogta MEC Nomusa Dube-Ncube.

By mid-morning on Thursday police and the fire services were still working on the scene where the Cogta's Mayville offices had been burned to the ground hours earlier.

Cogta described the arsonists as protesters, believed to be land invaders and informal shack dwellers.

The building served as office space for Cogta officials and traditional leadership support.

The offices had been previously attacked two days ago.

"These offices were previously attacked on Tuesday by protesters who threw what seemed to be a petrol bomb which caused some damage."

"This was during a protest where vehicles travelling on the Jan Smuts Highway and Vusi Mzimele (Bellair) Road intersection were attacked by land invaders who threw stones and passing vehicles and blocked roads," said Cogta spokesperson Lennox Mabaso.

The same office was robbed last November when a group of gunmen removed television sets and computers from the building.

The robbers also hijacked a Cogta employee's vehicle which was later recovered in Newlands.