The Star writers that former Johannesburg mayor Herman Mashaba has found the perfect project to pursue as he launches his new political party.
Mashaba, who this week revealed that he has formed a new political party, The People's Dialogue, announced on Wednesday that he would be helping the families of Lily Mine employees in their bid to retrieve the bodies of their relatives that remain buried underground. The bodies of Pretty Nkambule, Yvonne Mnisi and Solomon Nyirenda have been underground since February 2016, when the container they were working in as a lamp-room was swallowed up after the ground caved in. On Wednesday, Mashaba met with the family members and offered to assist them in bringing the government to court to force them to retrieve the bodies. The People's Dialogue spokesperson Michael Beaumont said the party would assist the families in getting legal assistance to force the owners of the Barberton mine, the Department of Minerals and Energy and the Department of Labour to venture underground. There is currently a court order prohibiting the families from going underground. The former mayor said he believed there was an unethical relationship between the mining company and the government. “This is the only explanation for the obstruction and intimidation that has been experienced by this community over the past four years,” Mashaba claimed. He said his party wanted to ensure that the families are also paid the outstanding salaries.
- Read the full original of the report in the above regard by Lungile Matsuma at Independent News
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