IFP Demands PKTT Intervention After Two Councillor Candidates Are Killed in KZN
- The Inkatha Freedom Party reported the deaths of two councillor candidates, Khethelo Mdluli and Lucky Sokhela, both shot outside their homes within a week of each other in KwaZulu-Natal
- The IFP called on the KwaZulu-Natal Political Killings Task Team to determine whether political motives were behind both killings ahead of the Local Government Elections
- IFP spokesperson Mkhuleko Hlengwa warned that attacks on candidates threaten South Africans' ability to participate freely in political life
PAY ATTENTION: Mark Briefly News as a preferred source, and our content will appear higher in your Google feed!
Source: Getty Images
KWAZULU-NATAL — The Inkatha Freedom Party has demanded that authorities urgently investigate the deaths of two of its councillor candidates, both fatally shot within seven days of each other in KwaZulu-Natal.
The party made the announcement on Wednesday, confirming that Khethelo Mdluli, a candidate from the King Cetshwayo District, had succumbed to injuries after being shot outside his home the previous week. Days later, Lucky Sokhela, a candidate for the uMshwathi Local Municipality, was shot outside his home on Tuesday.
IFP calls on Political Killings Task Team
The IFP has specifically requested that the KwaZulu-Natal Political Killings Task Team (PKTT) take over both investigations, identify those responsible and establish whether political motives played a role in the killings.
PAY ATTENTION: You can now search for all your favourite news and topics on Briefly News.
Party spokesperson Mkhuleko Hlengwa described the back-to-back deaths as deeply alarming.
"Two political candidates murdered within seven days is an alarming development that demands an immediate and decisive response from law-enforcement authorities," he said.
Hlengwa argued that the murders should not be handled as routine criminal matters, warning that violence targeting political candidates undermines the right of all South Africans to engage freely in the democratic process. The party has also called on the National Prosecuting Authority and other law-enforcement agencies to ensure those who use violence to shape political outcomes face full prosecution.
"There must be zero tolerance for political violence," Hlengwa added.
Violence clouds upcoming local government elections
The killings are not the only incidents raising concern within the IFP ahead of the Local Government Elections. The party said volunteers were allegedly assaulted while putting up campaign posters in the KwaNyuswa area of KwaZulu-Natal. IFP president Velenkosini Hlabisa said those responsible reportedly told volunteers the party was unwelcome in the area.
Hlengwa said the cumulative effect of these incidents was troubling.
"Political differences must never be settled through violence, threats or murder. No political office, election, political disagreement or contest for power is worth a single human life," he said.
The IFP has appealed to all political parties, community leaders and voters to reject intimidation and commit to a peaceful election campaign centred on policies rather than violence.
18 councillors gunned down in KZN
Previously, Briefly News reported that KwaZulu-Natal Premier Thamsanqa Ntuli has weighed in on the death of councillor Cedric "Khekhe" Khwela. He revealed that 18 elected councillors have been murdered across the province since the 2021 Local Government Elections. Khwela was gunned down at his Klaarwater offices on 6 August 2026 prompting Ntuli to call for political tolerance across KZN ahead of the November Local Government Elections.
PAY ATTENTION: Follow Briefly News on Twitter and never miss the hottest topics! Find us at @brieflyza!
Source: Briefly News
