Political Bloodbath: 2 Dead in Knysna Shooting After Former Mayor Aubrey Tsengwa's Murder
- A former ANC ward councillor and a taxi forum secretary were shot dead in Bongani, Knysna, on Thursday night
- The killings came just hours after former Knysna executive mayor Aubrey Tsengwa was gunned down on Wednesday
- Police have deployed a serious violent crime unit to investigate both shootings and whether they are linked
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WESTERN CAPE - Knysna has been plunged into crisis after two more men were shot dead on Thursday night, just one day after former executive mayor Aubrey Tsengwa was killed in a separate attack.
According to IOL, Mandla Matiwane, 47, and Mandla Tyololo, 48, were travelling in a vehicle through the Bongani area of Knysna when gunmen opened fire at approximately 9pm. Both men died at the scene.
Police spokesperson Brigadier Novela Potelwa said the motive for both shootings remains the subject of the police investigation and that investigators were looking into whether the two incidents were connected.
Who Were Matiwane and Tyololo?
Matiwane had a history in local politics, having served as the ANC councillor for ward 7 following the 2016 local government elections. Tyololo served as secretary of the Knysna Taxi Forum and had previously been charged in connection with the 2018 murder of ANC ward 8 councillor Victor Molosi, who was shot in the head outside his Concordia home after attending a school governing body meeting. Tyololo spent over two years in custody before the Knysna Regional Court acquitted him on 25 August 2020.
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Tsengwa's murder the night before
The night before, on Wednesday, Tsengwa, 48, was shot dead in Joodsekamp while driving home with three passengers. A gunman approached the vehicle, opened fire and fled on foot. Tsengwa was struck multiple times in the head and upper body and died at the scene. One of his passengers was wounded in the arm. Police are pursuing charges of murder and three counts of attempted murder in that case.
Tsengwa had served as Knysna's executive mayor from August 2022 until February 2025, when he was removed after the EFF and Knysna Independent Movement pulled their support. He returned to public office as ward 8 councillor after winning a by-election in June 2025.
Investigations into both shootings are continuing.
3 articles of political shootings
- Briefly News reported that Nelson Mandela Bay ANC Ward 27 Councillor Sicelo Mleve was fatally shot on Saturday evening during the voter registration weekend in Gqeberha
- eThekwini municipality Ward 17 councillor Sibusiso Khwela, was fatally shot in Klaarwater on Thursday, 6 August 2026, while attending to members of the public at his office.
- Kwazulu-Natal Premier Thamsanqa Ntuli has revealed that 18 elected councillors have been murdered across the province since the 2021 Local Government Elections.
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Source: Briefly News
