Communities and the police clash
Those who were arrested are accusing court officials and police members of corruption.
PHOLA PARK — An interesting turn of events played off at the Palmridge Magistrates Court on Monday, September 7, when Mleleki Extension 2 and Phola Park residents came out to support community members who were arrested and held in cells for five days, after a clash with the police the previous Thursday and Friday.
In the riot by Phola Park residents, about service delivery, eight people were arrested.
Five were released and three held in the cells until Monday, when they where released on R1 000 bail each.
Those who were arrested are accusing court officials and police members of corruption, since five of the eight have received no receipts as proof of payment of their bail and also claim that the bail was paid to a lawyer.
There is also a discrepancy in the bail set, which was brought down from R2 000 to R1 000 each.
Mleleki residents showed their support for the Phola Park eight after they had had a similar clash with the police. According to members of the Mleleki community, they have been negotiating with government about their desperate need for land, since they have no place to stay and were not receiving any positive response.
Residents moved onto the land called Mleleki and, on Friday, last week, were told by the police that they had to move their shacks.
According to residents in the area, police fired rubber bullets at them and assaulted some of them.
In the Mleleki incident, residents claim that some SAPS members were not in uniform and could not be identified from video clips taken on the day. They are determined to take their stories to local and national media to be heard and recognised.
Apart from reports of police brutality, issues concerning corruption at both Thokoza police and Palmridge Magistrates Court were raised when it came to posting of bail for the eight arrested in the Phola Park riot.
It has been reported that once the eight were arrested, a police official met them in their cell in Thokoza and they were told that he could secure their bail on the payment of R1 000 each.
They were offered a lawyer who said he knew a prosecutor who could assist them in getting bail at the police station if the money was produced. He also made his cellphone available to them so they could call their families to bring the money.
They were then taken to Vosloorus police where the lawyer made his appearance and five of the marchers paid him R1 000 each.
In support to fight against the alleged corruption at Thokoza police and the Palmridge Magistrates Court, Congress of the People (COPE) members, and the national spokesperson for Cope, Dennis Bloem handed in and signed a memorandum at the Thokoza Police on Wednesday September 9
The memorandum again described how bail was negotiated and paid and that no proof of payment given.
In the memorandum COPE demands that police should play their role in arresting those involved in corruption within the police. The memorandum stated that COPE’s demonstration on September 9 is to compel the Minister to enquire about countrywide police corruption and to take action.
The suspects made their first court appearance on Monday, September 7, and the case was postponed to September 29.
