Councillor Moshe Mphahlele died with his boots on.
He was shot and killed on Sunday night while doing the job he loved: serving the people in Johannesburg’s Region E.
He was responding to a call for help when he was shot.
This time the plea came from residents who said they were under attack by private security and Johannesburg Metro Police Department (JMPD) officials.
Mphahlele, 39, was responding to their cries to occupy residential containers that were erected by the City of Johannesburg in 2020. The project is not yet finished, and all the containers stand empty.
In February this year, more than 50 families attempted to forcefully occupy the buildings, but the police and private security evicted them. They have since been squatting outside the premises.
On Sunday, residents of one of the poorest and most overpopulated townships made another attempt to illegally occupy the blocks of containers, where they were met with resistance from the authorities. Residents then called Mphahlele for backup.
He was shot alongside a pregnant woman who survived with a bullet wound.
Mphahlele’s father, Khurishi Mphahlele, described his son as a hard worker and “selfless”. He remembered his son taking 12 subjects in his matric examinations.
“I asked him how he would manage to study for 12 subjects. But because he was a hard worker, he managed to pass all his subjects. That is the kind of person he was. He loved people and he loved helping everyone,” said Khurishi
Gauteng provincial police spokesperson Lieutenant Mavela Masondo said police are investigating the circumstances that led to the death of a community leader after members of the JMPD and a private security company were reportedly removing people said to have illegally occupied the private containers in Alexandra.
Masondo said police have opened a case of murder for investigation.
The Gauteng EFF released a statement calling for peace and calm among the people of Alexandra following the death of Mphahlele, the party’s Johannesburg deputy secretary.
“The EFF will not rest until those responsible for the death of our fighter are brought to justice. The organisation has deployed its structures to support the family of Fighter Mphahlele and the community of Johannesburg, Alexandra in particular. We call for calm and discipline,” said the statement.
Several high-profile people, including Johannesburg mayor Kabelo Gwamanda, former Johannesburg mayor Herman Mashaba, EFF Gauteng chairperson Nkululeko Dunga, local councillors from Alexandra, and many people Mphahlele worked with in the city council, paid a visit to Mphahlele’s home in Sandringham in eastern Johannesburg.
Gwamanda repeated that there will be an investigation into Mphahlele’s death. He said they will also address the issue of unoccupied containers across the township.
Mashaba said he worked closely with Mphahlele when he was mayor. He took a swipe at the government, saying that the government should take responsibility for the high crime in this country. “Alexandra has lost a fighter who thrived on social justice,” he said.
Video: Herman Mashaba says the state should take responsibility for the high crime rate.
