The defence in the #BlueLightMafia case, in the Randburg Magistrates Court this week, is trying to make a case from the still images of the highway gantries captured of the assault and the validity of the victim’s driver’s licence, but he is standing strong under the cross-examination. Action Society has supported the victim in this case since it went viral on social media in July last year.
“The defence’s current line of questioning seems a bit bizarre and could be a ploy to waste even more time, as they have consistently done in both this case and the internal disciplinary hearing thus far, ” said Juanita du Preez, Action Society spokesperson. “Questions regarding the presence of not the deputy president but, in fact, the president in the convoy have now pushed the defence’s case to another level and could have dire consequences for them.
“However, whoever might have been the VIP passenger, the fact remains that the police’s VIP Protection Unit assaulted an innocent road user and left him for dead next to a highway and is wasting time in not owning up to their bullying tactics. There is no telling when they will attack their next victim.”
Action Society has in the past called for a ban on the #BlueLightMafia and voiced its concern about the wasteful use of taxpayers’ money in defending the BlueLight perpetrators. A PAIA (Protection of Access to Information Act) application in May this year to establish who pays for their legal costs has not yet yielded any answers.
Action Society today launched a new campaign to pressure IPID and the Minister of Police to make progress a priority in the case.
“We want to know that when we use a public road, we will not be pushed from the road and possibly assaulted if we don’t move fast enough by blue light vehicles. We want the assurance that all South Africans can feel safe on the road and not just VIPs, and the only way to get that is to make an example of the #BlueLightEight,” concluded Du Preez.
Please note
Action Society is an apolitical civil rights organisation and police watchdog tasked with giving a voice to the vulnerable voiceless. Even though our name bears a resemblance to the political party Action SA, we are not affiliated in any way.
