Note to Editors: Please find attached Sithembiso-Ngema-English-Soundbite and Sithembiso-Ngema-IsiZulu-Soundbite
-The revelations before Howick Magistrate’s Court today raise serious questions about the political culture in KZN.
-A political party’s election campaign can never be placed above the sanctity of human life,
-Political parties must not become safe havens for individuals implicated in political violence.
The revelations before the Howick Magistrate’s Court today are deeply disturbing and raise serious questions about the political culture that has taken root in KwaZulu-Natal.
According to evidence presented in court, one of the accused in the murder of former DA uMngeni councillor Nhlalayenza Ndlovu told the court that his release on bail was important because the MK Party needs him to organise for the upcoming local government elections.
Let us be absolutely clear. A political party’s election campaign can never be placed above the sanctity of human life, the integrity of the criminal justice system or the interests of a grieving family.
Councillor Ndlovu was not merely a political statistic. He was a husband, a father, a community leader and a public representative who was brutally murdered at his home in December 2023.
The fact that a person accused of participating in his murder would tell a court that his political organisation needs him to prepare for an election is disturbing.
The question that must now be asked is, what kind of political organisation needs an accused murder suspect so desperately that his absence supposedly prejudices its election campaign?
The DA is not asking for anyone to be convicted outside of a court of law. Every accused person has the right to a fair trial and to be presumed innocent until proven guilty.
But the public also has a right to demand answers. When the president of MK is accused of multiple cases of corruption, to now go further and have alleged murderers state that they require bail because of MK’s political programme, leaves the public with more questions than answers.
Political parties must not become safe havens for individuals implicated in political violence. Elections must be contested through ideas, policies and the support of voters, not through intimidation, violence or the elimination of political opponents.
The latest developments are particularly serious given that the case has already seen multiple arrests, while two accused men have pleaded guilty and indicated their willingness to cooperate with investigators.
For too long, political killings have been treated as an unfortunate feature of KwaZulu-Natal’s political landscape.
The DA refuses to accept this as normal.
We will continue to stand with the Ndlovu family and demand that every person involved, whether they allegedly ordered, financed, facilitated or carried out this murder, faces the full might of of the law.
The people of KwaZulu-Natal deserve elections where candidates campaign freely, voters choose freely and political opponents go home alive.
No political party is more important than a human life.
No election is more important than justice.
And no political organisation should ever need an accused murderer to win an election.