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Angry villagers in Mount Frere, in the Eastern Cape, broke into the home of King Madzikane II Thandisizwe Diko – the husband to Khusela Diko, President Cyril Ramaphosa’s spokesperson.
The residents of Ncunteni village – helped by local leaders of the EFF – broke through three gates at the Elundzini Royal Residence last week.
The residents were angry that King Diko had closed one of the main roads in the village more than eight years ago without their consent and had now erected a wall and gates across the road.
In September City Press reported that the residents wanted the road, which initially passed next to the royal residence, to be reopened after the king rerouted the road and fenced it to form part of his royal residence.
READ: Residents claim chief is abusing power
When City Press visited the village last year there were men putting up a gate across what used to be part of the road.
Last week angry residents – with EFF supporters – armed with garden spades, hammers and sticks, marched from the sports grounds of Ncunteni village to the royal residence where they demanded that the gate be opened.
Three policemen outside the gate ignored the residents’ plea to accompany them to get the gate key.
The residents started shoving and pushing the gate until it opened. When one of the policemen went to call for backup, the angry villagers, singing anti-Diko slogans, pulled down two more gates and fencing.
The Diko family kept watch, although the king was not present.
The drama ended when police reinforcement arrived and told the angry protesters they would be shot at with rubber bullets if they did not leave the property.
Community leader Vusumzi Senteni said they had finally taken action after years of negotiations with the king, who vowed that the road would be opened “over my dead body”.
Senteni said the community asked the EFF to intervene when the Umzimvubu Local Municipality failed to get the road reopened.
The road is on municipal land and can be seen on the map of the area.
He said the road was reopened, but only for two days before the May elections last year, when the community threatened not to vote.
It was immediately closed a day after the elections, angering the community even more.
“So what we were doing here was to reclaim our road which is legal and is on the books of the municipality. We decided to involve the EFF after we had knocked on many different doors without success.
“What we have realised is that everybody is afraid to act against Diko because his wife works for the president,” he said.
The king had previously told the community that the road would “never be opened”, he said.
Musa Maliwa, a councillor at the Umzimvubu Local Municipality, said as EFF councillors they had tried several times to meet the king to discuss the road closure but they had not succeeded.
He said they had raised the issue with the top leadership of the municipality who had also failed to act against the king, adding that the king did not have the right to close a community road.
He said when they returned next time they would bring a tractor loader backhoe to enable them to pull down the walls across the road, including the fences, and remove the soil along the road.
Community elder Mahlathini Mkhatshane said he was now 89 years old and had been using that road since he was a child until it was unilaterally closed by the king about eight years ago.
“He just closed the road without speaking to anyone. In fact, he does as he pleases in this village. He never consulted anybody. He is mistreating his subjects. There is nothing good in this village,” he said.
Siviwe Myendeki, chairperson of the EFF in ward 17 in Mount Frere, said it was clear King Diko was not capable of leading his people.
“It is ironic that as a community we are usually the ones who close down roads when we protest but today we are crying to have a road reopened,” he said.
When asked about the issue of the road and the allegations against her husband, Khusela Diko said she was not her husband’s spokesperson and said the question should be directed at him.
When contacted for comment last week, King Diko did not respond to a list of questions sent to him and instead referred all questions to the Umzimvubu Local Municipality, the EFF and the police.
“Although I am not aware of what the police said, let them [community members and the EFF] speak on the matter and you can talk to the municipality about the road since they are responsible for such,” said King Diko.
Nokhanyo Zembe, spokesperson for the Umzimvubu municipality, said he was not aware of the protests but would follow up the matter this week and engage with the king in a bid to resolve the stalemate between him and the community.
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