Mayor calls for vigilance against perpetrators of abuse
A recent incident in which a 32-year-old man allegedly killed his 62-year-old mother and 10-month old baby, in Emfihlweni, in Tembisa, has caused an uproar.
Reacting to the incident, Ekurhuleni executive mayor, Clr Mondli Gungubele, has called on local communities to be vigilant against perpetrators of women and children abuse.
Gungubele says he believes the only hope South Africa has to end the scourge of violence of any kind against women and children is if all communities come together against the perpetrators.
“This is an extremely shocking incident. How do you go about maiming members of your own family, including an innocent toddler who does not even know what is going on? This baffles the mind,” says Gungubele.
He adds that, in most cases, the perpetrators are known to the families of the victims and yet they still get away with it.
“We must agree that they do not belong in our space and be vigilant in blowing the whistle against them. Let us flush them out, no matter who they are and how much we love them” he adds.
He says it is not normal that a mother can be arrested for poisoning her own toddlers, just like it cannot be understood how a man can take a knife and stab his own mother and his own baby to death.
Gungubele points out that if people are scared to expose perpetrators, they must resort to reporting them anonymously.
The country’s 16 Days of Activism Campaign started a week ago.
During this period, the entire nation embarks on a programme to fight the prevalence of women and children abuse in communities.
Gungubele appeals to all councillors to lead the gospel of non-violence against women and children from the front in their various constituencies.
“As leaders, we are expected to promote the right and positive messages; in actual fact, it is wrong for us to think that this campaign must only take place from November 25 to December 10,” he says.
“This is a campaign for 365 days a year, as crimes against our most vulnerable in society do not happen in just November/December, but throughout the year.”
