Polokwane MMC Alfred Moakamedi told to step down following GBV allegations

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By Mashudu Sadike 39 months ago

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Pretoria – ANC city councilor and recently appointed Polokwane MMC for water and sanitation, Alfred Moakamedi, accused of assault with intent to cause grievous bodily harm, has received a letter of withdrawal.

This after he allegedly beat up a female comrade at a party branch meeting in Moletjie, outside Polokwane in June.

Moakamedi, a councilor from Ward 16 in Moletjie near Polokwane in Limpopo, was accused of beating a member of the branch’s special team, Tlou Reinah Lekoloane, 37, who has since opened an assault case at Seshego police station.

ANC provincial secretary Soviet Lekganyane confirmed to Pretoria News that he wrote to Moakamedi, who is also an additional ANC member Peter Mokaba Region, asking if he had been criminally charged and he would withdraw or risk suspension.

Pretoria News can reveal that Moakamedi has been criminally charged and is out on bail, and will make his second appearance in Seshego Magistrate’s Court on September 17.

The leaked Pretoria News letter addressed to Moakamedi from Lekganyane and titled: Implementing the National Conference Resolution and NEC Decisions Regarding Members Charged with Bribery and Other Serious Crimes / Suspension in Terms of Rule 25.70 of the constitution of the ANC, asks if the member is actually criminally charged.

It reads in part: The Provincial Secretary’s office has received a letter from members of your branch indicating that you have been criminally charged in court. Please confirm if this is true, that you have indeed been criminally charged, and if you have made efforts to inform the organization to voluntarily opt out in accordance with the removal guidelines as adopted by the NEC. You are requested to respond to this letter no later than September 10, 2021.

Moakamedi ignored phone calls and text messages sent to him. However, it was reported that the charges were just a political smear campaign against him and that he would only step down if the court found him guilty. I will only step down if the court finds me guilty and the ANC says I must step down. It’s just a plan to get rid of myself in the ANC leadership structures. They’re just playing dirty politics, he said.

However, speaking to Pretoria News over the weekend, Lekganyane said if the member had indeed been criminally charged, he should have stepped down on the day he was charged.

Yes, I wrote a letter to the region and to Moakamedi himself inquiring about the allegations and if they are true he should either step down or be suspended. The comrade cannot hold a position in the municipality or elsewhere if he has been the subject of criminal charges. His appointment as MMC is wrong. The comrade must have a revolutionary morality and withdraw if the allegations are true, especially if it is true that he has beaten a woman. We don’t want to see women marching through Polokwane municipality over gender-based violence, Lekganyane said.

Peter Mokaba’s regional spokesperson Jimmy Machaka could not confirm receiving the letter. He said: I cannot confirm because I have not seen the letter yet but I will check with the secretary of the region and confirm.

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