Top cops and 'Mayor' to be jailed, orders Court

Former Mogalakwena mayor, Andries Thlalefi Mashemaite, the SAPS provincial head of legal services Maj.Gen. Mbhalati and Mokopane police station commander, Col. Lucas Mogwaneng are to be imprisoned for three months, the Gauteng High Court ruled on Wednesday afternoon.
This follows three days of turmoil at the Mogalakwena municipality during which provincial and local police officers ignored a High Court order of 4 November and forcefully removed municipal management and councillors to give Mashemaite and eight of his followers access to the municipal buildings.
The court earlier ruled that 11 respondents including Mashemaite, Mogwaneng and Mbhalati are not allowed to interfere in the running of the municipality and that they are not to enter the premises.
But on Monday Mashemaite and his followers returned along with guards from two private security companies and the blessing of the MEC for Co-operative Governance Human Settlements and Traditional Affairs (COCHSTA).
Police fired rubberbullets at municipal workers and members of the public when they tried to deny Mashemaite access to the municipality.
“Yes, we are aware of the interdict,” deputy provincial commissioner, Maj.Genl. Berning Tandazo Ntlemeza said on Monday. “Our legal team is dealing with that.”
Ntlemeza said the police had no choice other than to fire rubber bullets at municipal workers. They were merely responding to the violent stone-trhowing, he said. Bricks and stones were hurled at the police and Mashemaite when they approached the buildings on Monday.
On Tuesday municipal workers refused to return to their workstations despite Mashemaite warning that steps will be taken against them if they fail to do so. By Wednesday the municipality was closed.
“We do not recognise Mashamaite as our mayor and we will not take orders from anyone other than our municipal manager, William Kekana,” one of the employees said.
It all started four years ago when Kekana suspended and later fired corporate affairs manager, Henry Thobejane after a labour court found him guilty on 26 charges ranging from fraud, theft and gross dishonesty to financial misconduct and failure to carry out lawful instructions.
A group of councillors under the leadership of former mayor, Esther Mothibi, tried to sack Kekana and bring Thobejane back as municipal manager. A court interdict and strong support for Kekana among  council members foiled their plans.
Mothibi was later stripped of her title as mayor and ANC leadership brought in Mashemaite, a man with good struggle credentials and solid leadership experience. Mashemaite suspended Kekana for reasons that are still not clear.
Three months later a special council meeting was convened and a resoloution to reinstate Kekana was adopted. The first thing Kekana noticed on his return was that the Mayoral budget was depleted. A forensic audit was commissioned and KPMG found evidence implicating Mashemaite in the misappropriation of funds.
Mashemaite was also stripped of his title as mayor and Mabuela was elected in his place.
But steps were already taken at provincial ANC level to deal with the 23 ANC councillors who voted in support of Kekana’s return. COCHSTA wanted to place Mogalakwena under provincial administration.
The Mogalakwena Residents’ Association threw their weitght behind Kekana and the councillors who supported him. Their Leader, Piet Madematje Pale, was assasinated only days after he obtained a court order preventing provincial intervention in the municipality.
COCHSTA refuses to acknowledge Mabuela and on Wednesday the IEC proceded with by-elections to replace Mabuela and 11 other councillors who are, according to Mashemaite and COCHSTA, no longer councillors nor members of the ANC. As far as COCHSTA is concerned Mashemaite is the true mayor of Mogalakwena.
He, however, is not allowed to enter the municipal premises. Nor are his eight fellow councillors: Raisibe Matsemela, Zunaid Surtee, Mankopane Rapatsa, Malesela Mokwele, Eric Gwangwa, Mahlodi Madiba, Madibana Lentsoane and Mapula Tefu. Together with the two security companies they hired and Mogwaneng and Mbhalati these 11 will have to foot legal bills and pay for the damages to  municipal property this week.
They have until 23 March 2015 to convince the court that Wednesday's order should not be made permanent.