'Why did they have to shoot them?', asks family of slain municipal worker

The death of Tshepo Maseko, 33, during the Middelburg municipality workers' protest this week, has left a trail of destruction that even his own family cannot comprehend.

Maseko died when a group of guards hired by the Steve Tshwete local municipality in Middleburg, Mpumalanga, shot at protesting municipal workers on Wednesday. Four workers were left injured and Maseko was the only fatality. He died from a wound at the back of his head.

His uncle John Mothibeli said the family learnt about the incident when he saw pictures of the shooting circulating on social media, just a few minutes after his nephew, an electrician, had died at the hands of the guards while protesting for increased wages at the municipal buildings.  

“I then called the mother and I was informed that he had been shot and was in hospital. I rushed there and I found that he was declared dead on arrival. It broke my heart. We are badly affected as a family to have lost our son in such a tragic way,” he said.

“There was so much we were looking forward to seeing him do. He studied at a TVET college and qualified as an artisan. He supported his family and he had so many plans for them.”

“He lived and supported his daughter, mother and two sisters. He had been working for the municipality since 2010 and had used his earnings to refurbish his family's four-bedroom house in Mhluzi.”

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Mothibeli said the family would be seeking legal advice on how to proceed with the matter and would be issuing a statement soon.

One of the survivors from Extension 3 Mhluzi, Harris Sithole, also 33, who worked for the waste collection department, was shot in the abdomen and has been admitted to a hospital where doctors are monitoring him.

Sithole’s mother said her son sustained spinal injuries and had internal bleeding which could compromise the possibility of him ever being able to walk again.

“He can’t move at all and there is a chance he won’t be able to walk. He is in so much pain,” the mother said.

“I want to know why they shot my child. Workers have every right to raise their grievances and be dissatisfied, it's part of democracy. So, why did they have to shoot them?”

The clash took place at the municipality’s headquarters in the Middleburg CBD on Wednesday after the dismissal of 16 employees who had allegedly raised their concerns over the appointment of 30 bodyguards hired by the acting municipal manager, Thokozile Nkosi, in April. costing the municipality close to R3m.

Workers downed tools in solidarity with the 16; on the day of the shooting, protesting workers, who were situated outside the municipal premises, said bodyguards dispatched a drone into the crowd which protesters started stoning.

Municipal worker Wiseman Ntshangase said the bodyguards fired shots towards the crowd.

“We then all scattered. Some of us ran to the front gate where we wanted to know why we were being shot at. Suddenly they started firing live ammunition at us,” he said.

“Tshepo was shot in the back of the head and some people were running to his aid to try and resuscitate him.”

According to workers, the guards were posted along every entrance and were roaming the corridors carrying riffles and intimidating staff members. 

Road maintenance technician Thandiwe Mahlangu-Sibanyoni, who was among the dismissed workers, said the guards created a hostile working environment prompting Samwu representatives to speak up.

“We tolerated it for months, but it got worse where these guards were harassing us at every move,” she said.

Steve Tshwete local municipality spokesperson Prudence Magutle said it would only take action on the alleged perpetrators after the police investigation.

“We have a [private] security company that is responsible for guarding our building. They were also bodyguards of the municipal manager because of previous [incidents]. Let us wait for the police investigations. Is it the bodyguards of the municipal manager or guards of the municipal building? We do not know.

“The police still have to go to the employees, security personnel and compile their investigations and wait for their investigations. The outcome of the investigation will guide us further. We have not yet decided what we will to. It will all depend on what the [police] report says,’’ said Magutle.