POLITICAL VIOLENCE FEARS: Knysna tensions grow after two councillors killed within 24 hours

Three recent murders in Knysna have raised fears among the community that this might signal the return of politically linked killings associated with faction fighting.

Political tensions are rising in Knysna after the killings of former mayor and serving ANC councillor Aubrey Tsengwa, who was shot dead on Wednesday, 19 August, followed less than 24 hours later by the fatal shootings of former councillor Mandla Matiwane and local taxi forum secretary Mandla Tyololo.

The killings have heightened fears that the violence could deepen political instability in the town ahead of the local government elections. The three murders also take on an added significance when considering Knysna’s history of political contestation and allegations of factional battles. There are also fears that this latest violence could signal a return to politically linked killings.

Western Cape Police Oversight MEC Anroux Marais said Tsengwa’s murder occurred during an “increasingly sensitive political period”, warning that political violence threatened democracy, particularly while campaigning for the local government elections gathered momentum.

Tsengwa, a sitting ANC councillor and former mayor, was gunned down on 19 August in what appeared to be a targeted attack. Less than 24 hours later, former councillor Mandla Matiwane and ANC member Mandla Tyololo, secretary of the local taxi forum, were also killed.

The killings have fuelled speculation about a possible ANC factional issue, particularly as the day before Tsengwa’s murder, the party had planned a meeting to discuss candidate nominations for the 4 November elections.

The violence comes amid wider concern over attacks on councillors and municipal officials, with South African Local Government Association president Bheke Stofile warning that such killings posed a direct threat to democracy.

Xolisile Ngumbela, an assistant dean of teaching and learning in the Faculty of Management Sciences, Central University of Technology, writes in an opinion piece that one of the biggest risks to local democracy and government in South Africa is the ongoing murder of municipal councillors.

Knysna offers a particularly troubling backdrop to this pattern. The municipality has been mired in political instability and a prolonged service-delivery crisis, with water, sanitation and refuse collection repeatedly becoming flashpoints in the battle between rival political groupings.

The killings have occurred at a particularly delicate moment for Knysna Municipality. Just 12 days before Tsengwa was gunned down, President Cyril Ramaphosa authorised a Special Investigating Unit (SIU) probe into alleged irregularities in a municipal security tender dating back to 2017.

The SIU has been authorised to investigate Knysna Municipality’s R68-million Tender T25 of 2023/24 , a three-year contract for physical security services at municipal properties.