The Mayor of Ngwathe Local Municipality in the Free State councillor Victoria De Beer parents home was torched by angry protesters on Monday, 16 January.
It is reported that the aggrieved protesters in Parys turned on the family home of the Mayor and set it alight over issues of service delivery.
The angry residents barricaded roads with burning tyres and rocks, protesting against water cuts in the area. They also blockaded a busy R59 stretch between Parys and Sasolburg.
Police spokesperson sergeant Sinah Mpakane said one room of the house was destroyed. She said protesters were protesting about water issues.
“Four people have been arrested, three women and one man. The situation is a little bit calm but the POP [Public Order Policing] is still monitoring the situation because there are small groupings of people. The R58 road from Sasol to Parys has been barricaded with burning tyres and stones,” explains Mpakane.
“We’ve opened a case of arson. The case was opened by the state at this stage, we have no value of the items destroyed,” she said.
Clips of the house going up in flames went viral on social media.
Mpakane said protests also erupted in other parts of the Free State including Kroonstad and Ventersburg, where residents were also complaining about water issues.
Meanwhile, the Moqhaka Municipality in Kroonstad in the Free State says it has since applied to Eskom for an exemption, in order for strategic water infrastructure facilities to be isolated from rolling blackouts.
The facilities include the water treatment plant and water reservoirs.
On Monday, residents in Kroonstad marched to the municipality offices over rolling blackouts and lack of water supply.
The municipality’s spokesperson Dika Kheswa said they have been experiencing a number of water shortages since rolling blackouts began.
Source: Sowetan Live, SABC News, The South African, image from Twitter: @MDNnewss
