LUCAS LEDWABA
THE FORMER Portfolio Head of Finance in the Vhembe District Municipality, who was arrested after sending threatening videos of a firing gun to two mayors following a reshuffle, has been released on bail of R3000 in a strange twist of events.
Ndivhuwo Calvin Radamba, 38, was arrested in Polokwane last Saturday after he allegedly sent a threatening video to the mayor of the Vhembe District Municipality Nenguda Dowelani and Thulamela Local Municipality mayor Avhashoni Tshifhango.
This was allegedly after Radamba, a former member of the mayoral committee in the Vhembe district municipality, was reshuffled by council last month.
Radamba’s case was postponed to 17 June for a formal bail application after he appeared in the Thohoyandou magistrates’ court on Monday.
He was remanded in custody.
However, on Friday, the regional spokesperson for the director of public prosecutions Mashudu Malabi-Dzhangi announced in a statement that Radamba had been granted bail of R3000.
She said the reason for the case being heard on Thursday and Friday was due to its urgency and also because prosecutors were available to sit on the hearing.
Malabi-Dzhangi said the bail conditions include that Radamba “must not interfere with witnesses in any manner and not to go to their houses and no communicating directly or indirectly with witnesses.”
“It is alleged that the accused was reshuffled from his position to a councilor member on Friday (05 June 2020). It is further alleged that after the meeting he sent a video clip of a firing gun to the Executive Mayor of Vhembe District and Mayor of Thulamela Municipality’s phones,” she said.
The matter was remanded to 25 August 2020 for further investigations.
The Vhembe District Municipality which incorporates a large portion of the far north eastern part of Limpopo is among 11 municipalities that invested public funds totalling R2.6-billion into VBS Mutual Bank in violation of municipal finance regulations and in disregard of warnings by national treasury.
Fear has gripped the Vhembe district in the wake of the VBS scandal following reports of intimidation and the killing of two union leaders who called for action against the perpetrators.
(Compiled by Inside Metros staff)