ANA reports that the Brits Magistrate's Court heard on Thursday that Association of Mineworkers and Construction Union (Amcu) president Joseph Mathunjwa protected members implicated in corruption.  

Amcu's internal conflicts were revealed at the bail hearing of former and current union members accused of plotting to kill union leaders in what appears to be infighting for leadership positions.  Zamelekhaya Mboxela, a former Amcu vice chairperson at Lonmin’s Rowland shaft, told the court he believed Mathunjwa was protecting leaders implicated in corrupt activities, because he never acted on the basis of evidence of corruption presented to him.  "We took evidence of corruption to [the] head office, they promised to investigate and come back to us, instead we were expelled from the union," Mboxela claimed.  When prosecutor Cassius Mona asked him whether he was aggrieved by his expulsion from Amcu, Mboxela responded by saying:  "The expulsion came from head office, I was scared to challenge it."  He went on to testify that as a result of non-resolution of workers problems, divisions were created within Amcu.  Mona charged that Mboxela resigned from Lonmin and fled to the Eastern Cape after he realised that the plot to kill Amcu leaders had been discovered.  The case was postponed to 11 April for further hearing on the bail application.

• Read this report in full at eNCA
• See too, Court told there was tension between Lonmin Amcu leadership, at EWN

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