The abducted Nkangala Municipal Manager Maggie Skosana – who uses a wheelchair – and her driver MG Mtsweni remain missing more than two days after armed men in camouflage forcibly took them away.
Reports indicate that the two women were abducted outside the gates of the municipal precinct on Thursday.
The Nkangala District Municipality, in Mpumalanga, on Friday confirmed the abduction and said a criminal case had been opened with the Middleburg SA Police Service and the investigations were under way.
Concerns have heightened since police said they found the manager’s car abandoned at a mine in the area.
Skosana’s wheelchair and other belongings were found inside the car.
However, both women were nowhere in sight, police said.
Commenting on the abduction, the ANC said it “received with great shock and pain the sad news of the abduction and kidnapping of the Mrs MM Skosana, the Municipal Manager of Nkangala District Municipality and her driver Ms G Mtshweni by unknown and camouflaged people on the 20th of October 2022 right in front of the municipal gate”.
A statement issued Friday by the ANC Provincial Executive Committee in Mpumalanga said: “The ANC condemns this act of criminality and cruelty against women who are part of the most vulnerable sections of society.
“We join the ANC REC [Regional Executive Committee] of Nkangala, the municipality, and the entire community in making the call for any person who has any information about this matter to urgently inform the police.”
The statement added: “As the ANC, we have confidence in our law enforcement agencies and remain very hopeful that the culprits will be arrested soon, and the MM [municipal manager] and her driver will be found in good health.
“We call for calm and maximum support for the Skosana and Mtshweni families.”
Members of the public with information about the abduction or the whereabouts of the women are encouraged to contact the investigating officer, Lieutenant-Colonel Mandla Motha, on 082-462-2746.
