Carl Niehaus and Pule Mabe Share Perceptions of #MinistersHostage Situation

Carl Niehaus and Pule Mabe Share Perceptions of #MinistersHostage Situation

  • Many South Africans have been sharing their thoughts about the ministers hostage situation that occurred on Thursday evening
  • ANC National Spokesperson Pule Mabe stated that the incident should not be regarded as a 'crisis' while speaking to the media during an election campaign
  • Carl Niehaus, on the other hand, believes that it was indeed a crisis and that the veterans who were arrested should be released

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TSHWANE - National Spokesperson for the ANC Pule Mabe believes that the hostage situation that has been making national headlines was not a crisis. Mabe was speaking to the media on Friday during an election campaign in Tshwane.

Carl Niehaus has also spoken out about the drama, stating that the 56 arrested military veterans, who kept two ministers and a deputy minister captive, should be released. Mabe explained that the liberation war veterans made their way to Luthuli House on Monday to raise issues.

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Niehaus believes that Government and the ruling party should be more sensitive to the military veterans' 'desperation' rather than display anger toward them.

Pule Mabe, Carl Niehaus, Luthuli House, Ministers Hostage, Military veterans
Pule Mabe and Carl Niehaus are just two political figures who shared their thoughts about the hostage situation on Thursday. Image: Dino Lloyd and Felix Dlangamandla/Netwerk24/Gallo Images
Source: Getty Images

According to TimesLIVE, Mabe said there is a task team being led by Deputy President David Mabuza which will deal with the issues the liberation struggle war veterans are facing. He further stated that the ruling party will explore the best ways to solve issues without automatically involving legal measures.

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Mabe then urged the veterans to listen to Government's interventions to help resolve the matters. On the other side of things, IOL reported that Niehaus referred to the situation as a 'crisis'. He explained that the hostage situation is in line with Government, which he says has not even addressed the lightest demands made by the veterans.

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Meeting goes wrong: 56 Military vets arrested for allegedly holding ministers hostage

Briefly News earlier reported that a total of 56 military veterans who are part of the Liberation Struggle War Veterans (LSWV) were apprehended by the South African Police Services after they allegedly held two ministers and a deputy minister against their will on Thursday night.

The talks between the ministers and LSWV seemingly did not go as planned as members of LSWV refused to let the ministers leave the St George's Hotel in Tshwane. The vets are said to have demanded R4.2 million each, according to the Daily Maverick.

South Africans react to the hostage-taking of ministers

Social media users were completely shocked that Defence Minister Thandi Modise had been taken hostage. Some people highlighted that Deputy President David Mabuza was initially scheduled to meet with veterans but had been unable to make it to the meeting.

Source: Briefly News

Authors:
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Reeshni Chetty Reeshni Chetty is a senior current affairs reporter. The Damelin journalism and media studies graduate was top of her class with 16 distinctions and she boasts experience in radio, print and digital media. When Reeshni is not rushing to bring you the most important and breaking news in current affairs, she's raising awareness around mental health. Reeshni has a passion for breaking the stigma surrounding mental health issues.