Home

ANC councillor killed in NWest road crash

Reading Time: 3 minutes
 An African National Congress (ANC) councillor in the JB Marks municipality in North West has died in a car accident, the party said on Thursday.

Acting provincial secretary Sussana Dantjie said Moeder “Muda” Mokae died on Wednesday.

“The ANC is saddened that while the party and the country are grieving the passing of Mama Madikizela-Mandela and Ntate Zola Skweyiya, we also lose a councillor in a tragic accident that took the lives of six other people,” she said.

Mokae was a Member of the Mayoral Committee (MMC)  for sport and recreation in the JB Marks municipality, formerly Tlokwe.

“Councillors are the first point of service delivery for our communities and it becomes even more painful when we lose people who are in contact with our communities on a daily basis to ensure that their lives are changed for the better. We send our sincere condolences to the family, friends and comrades of councillor Mokae and wish them strength in this difficult time,” she said.

Mokae and another council employee were travelling to Potchefstroom after attending a council meeting in Ventersdorp. Their car collided head-on with another car, both cars burst into flames.

The pair and the two occupants of the other car burnt beyond recognition, a six-year-old child from the other car died later in hospital.

Meanwhile, Community Safety and Transport Management MEC Dr Mpho Motlhabane raised a concern about deaths reported in the province in the past two days.

On Tuesday, eight people died, — five of them burned beyond recognition when a van collided with a minibus taxi along the R30 road linking Rustenburg and Ventersdorp.

The van with two occupants was traveling from the Ventersdorp direction while the minibus taxi with seven people including the driver was travelling towards the Ventersdorp direction. It was reported that the minibus was from the Marikana heading to Matatiele in the Eastern Cape.

“Losing more than two people in one incident raises a concern. It is not accepted to lose so many lives of our beloved ones in two days. Today our roads are painted in blood,” he said.

He appealed to all road users to be vigilant at all the times and  always ensure that they adhere to the road rules.

“Road safety begins with an individual and it is every ones responsibility. Our motorists must always ensure that their vehicles are roadworthy and abide by the road rules at all times,” he said.

“If we can have responsible road users, we will succeed in reducing the number of accidents and deaths on our roads. We cannot have a traffic or police officer in every road for people to adhere to road rules. Let us begin to self police ourselves and obey the law.”

Author

MOST READ