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ARE THE PRO-DEMOCRACY MPS IN DANGER?
The two incarcerated MPs believe the assault meted on them on September 22 was an attempt on their lives and believe the next attack will kill one or both of them.
Twelve days after the early morning assault by over 20 balaclava-clad correctional officer, the MPs have revealed how they fear the next assault, which could be their last.
The MPs’ fears were relayed by a junior correctional officer who also revealed that MP Mthandeni Dube’s sight could be permanently damaged as he was sprayed with an unidentified chemical which completely blinded him for over a week. The warder said he felt compelled to reveal what occurred leading to the assault because superiors have already distorted the narrative and are banking on a botched enquiry to absolve them. The warder also revealed how the Ngwempisi MP was deliberately denied medication in order to conceal the extent of the assault on him.
“He couldn’t see anything for several days and our superiors resolved to not take him to the hospital as he had to be led around and this would have raised an alarm as the mass democracy movement would know the extent of his injuries from pictures and videos.” The junior officer said the attack on the MPs was premeditated. “The order was that they should be assaulted severely.”
Attempts to assault them during the day as though punishing all inmates failed after the MPs identified their assailants and called them by name. “The MPs were vocal as they argued that collective punishment was unwarranted as inmates had not broken any rules. The MPs didn’t do anything else except speak out, hence we are shocked to hear that MP Bacede Mabuza allegedly assaulted the officers. How could he assault a group of officers carrying batons and guns?”
Angered after being identified, the officers left, regrouped and returned a few hours after midnight and attacked the MPs without saying a word. Even though it was dark, MP Bacede is said to have been able to note the canister being sprayed in their direction and shielded his face in time.
“MP Mthandeni was not so lucky. He got the chemical in his eyes and has been unable to see clearly since.” The warder said the passive response by the mass democratic movement to the MPs assault has been interpreted as a positive for his superiors. “They are calling the MPs irrelevant to the mass democratic movement and telling them that the people they thought they were fighting for have forgotten about them every chance they get.”
It could not be possible to get the government’s comment because of a prior communication to this publication: that it does not respond to online publications.