Amnesty Hearings — Umtata — 2000-02-01

MR MALAN: Please do it, Sir.
MR GUMENGU
"As I said, we arrived in Capt Mfazwe's house in Full Valley with his informer.  We both reported to him and he told us that we were going to meet in the office on a Sunday or Monday, I cannot remember.
	I went back to my home.  We received a message later while I was still in the house.  Mr Tjane came by, who was on stand-by on that particular weekend, he told us that he had received a call through the radio, we were called to Willowvale.  Then he was requesting me to go with him and the person who was with him on ...(indistinct) duty Mr Smal.
	I agreed to go with him to Capt Mfazwe to give me the permission to leave with them, but we were not told what was the reason in Willowvale, but they just told us that there was a problem that needed our immediate attention.  
	The three of us went there, it was myself, Tjane and Smooi.  The Security Police of Willowvale, there was Madulwani - I'm not sure if I'm pronouncing the surname the right way, but he had somebody else in his company from Willowvale members.  They told us that they had received some information that people who were known as terrorists were around and their informant had directed them to the place and they wanted us to go and help there and get to those terrorists.
	We further contacted Capt Mfazwe about the mission and we told him that we think we have enough manpower and we'll be able to do the job successfully.  We did go to the place but we found nothing.  And the police from Willowvale said they had received a radio message the day before that there was a car chase that involved Sthembele Zokwe and they wanted to know more about the situation.  I told them that yes, he was wanted and then he is supposed to be arrested, that was Capt Mfazwe's instruction.
	The police from Willowvale told us to go to a certain house in the same village where they thought that they might get some information.  We did go to the house and when the police came from the house they told us that he was in the other house in the same vicinity, they had seen him and his car was also there and we were told to go there, we would find him there.
	We did go to the house.  As we were still coming at a distance we saw the car that was parked in front of the house.  We alighted, we hid our car and we alighted from our car.  I instructed the group that was with me to be left behind because I saw young boys that were playing outside, playing next to the garden.  I went to these young boys and then I asked them if they knew the house where the car was parked.  These young boys said yes, and then I asked them who was staying in house.  They told me that it was a certain lady teacher and I asked who that lady teacher was staying with and then they said the person who is there is a person who normally visits the house, the owner of that car and they said he was also in the house.
	I went back to my colleagues and then I told them that Sthembele was in the house and then I requested them to follow later.  I was going to go there first and position myself in a strategic manner.  I did so, I went next to the kraal, the kraal that was just built with stones in front of the house, and I indicated to the other colleagues of mine to come.  And my intention was that even if he was getting out of the house seeing them, I knew that he was going to run towards my direction, towards the kraal that is.  
	My colleagues came and I took cover next to the kraal.  They surrounded the house.  In that process I did not move, I was still lying there, I heard a handgrenade explosion and after that there was gunshots.
	After a while when I realised that the shooting was continuing, I told them to stop shooting because I couldn't see anyone getting out or getting out and this place was already covered in smoke and I told them to stop.  As I was facing the car I realised that I can still use this car as my cover and then I tiptoed towards the door, hiding myself behind the car and I realised that the door was closed and I thought that some people were sleeping inside. 
	And the people from the village who were coming from the other house behind this particular house, came.  When they came I realised that there was a padlock at this door, it was closed, and the woman who looked like the owner of the house came and asked questions as to who we were looking for.  We told her we were looking for the owner of the car.  She told us that he was not there and even his host was not there.  And then we asked her to open the house and then she said she could not open the house, not unless we can break into the house and we told her that the only thing that we can do to break into the house and see what was inside.
	And then I asked my colleagues about the explosion, how did it happen.  They told me that as they were approaching the house, others under the windows approaching the door, when they were about to meet at the door apparently they touched something that was a booby-trap either in the house or in the car.  They said they detonated and they fired back after the explosion.  They were just hitting because they heard the explosion.
	We opened the house.  After opening the house I did not know what happened either.  We contacted Mfazwe to bring some reinforcements to search the house.  I cannot remember because I was no longer forward in this operation because we could not get the person that we were looking for and the car was partly damaged and even the house was hit by the handgrenades.  It became apparent that the roof of the house was damaged.  
	Capt Mfazwe visited the scene and the police from East London and other police were coming from Umtata.  I don't know, I cannot remember whether that happened in that same day or the following day.  I was there present but I did not mention anything because I don't know how did these booby-traps come about.
	We continued getting some information about Sthembele Zokwe, up until such time where we realised that they were in a hurry to attack the office.  The office was forced to sacrifice certain people, but we couldn't tell them that they were going to be sacrificed because we knew the date, we knew the time when they were going to attack.  It was going to be daylight.  
	As the people who had this information, we decided not to reveal it and the people who were in other units and did not have the information, we decided not to tell them anything.  Mr Mfazwe was going to make sure that our receptionist was busy, remained there at the reception at the time.  Even it they come to attack they'll think it's easier because there'll be a woman as a receptionist and then we will be able to go on with our intentions, make sure that we become successful by overpowering them.
	They came on that particular day, they surrounded the office with the car.  They drove around the office with the car but did not stop.  They did not do a thing on that particular day, but Capt Mfazwe called me after attending meetings in Umtata.  He called me and he told me that one of my assignments as a person who has done a lot of different duties and then my new assignment now was that - as the department they were not willing to see Sthembele Zokwe alive again or in any prison.  	They did not want to see him alive because he was referred to as poison and it is said that if you poison a person, eat some poison or if the poison penetrated the leg, then the whole leg will have to be amputated.  Therefore if they take this particular person to the jail, it's going to be very dangerous for the government because he was going to recruit each and everyone in jail.  And then he assigned that duty to me, that I should make sure that he is dead.
	I tried to ask some questions from Mr Mfazwe as to how was this going to be done.  He said "No, that's no big deal, when you meet him you have to do the act".  And we are the only people, Mr Mfazwe and myself, who knew about the plan but he did not tell me, he was not even prepared to tell me of who had approved, about who had approved this plan.  He was working for the government and he was doing the right thing.
	We continued getting information and about other activities.  I was in Johannesburg.  They would call me if there was something new.  Sometimes I would bring some bits of information because I had my own informers who were surveilling him.  I would be called if there was something new. When I was visiting my home for a weekend or a month-end, it was on a Saturday morning at about seven or seven thirty, Shologu came by, who was in the anti-terrorism, in the office of district two at that time.  Shologu came to tell me that he was coming to give me the car from the office because he had heard that I was around.
	The reason for him to give me this car is because he was going home and he was going to use his own car and he was only to leave when his wife knocked off from work at about past twelve.  He told me to go to the office and check as to what kind of problems they were experiencing because on Saturdays they would knock off at about twelve, but he told me to keep the car until he comes back on a Sunday.
	I took the car at about 10 a.m. I went to the office to see what was happening and the most important thing was for me to go there and use the work telephone to contact my informants.
	When I got into the office there were members from the Anti-Terrorism Unit.  Amongst them there was W/O Spambo, Xholile Tutu.  I'm not sure whether Smooi was there or not but even the other people from the office like the receptionist, was also there.  They told me that they were in possession of some information that some of the people who were in Sthembele Zokwe's unit whose name was Tami Moweli, who was also wanted by the office with the intention of questioning him or to lay charges against him, it was said that he was in Umtata and the house was already identified, the house that he was staying in.
	They requested me to join them to go there with them.  I tried to contact Capt Mfazwe to get permission to join them in the operation.  Capt Mfazwe approved to that but he said his instructions to them were different from his instructions to me, I was supposed to keep in mind all the instructions that I was given by Capt Mfazwe.
	Shologu came by at about twelve with his wife, coming to tell me that he was leaving home, he was just telling me that he was on his way home.  I used that opportunity to ask Shologu to postpone going home on that particular day and go home later on, because he is a man that I used to trust.  I told him that these officers had asked me to accompany them and then I also requested him to be in the group that was about to leave because I trusted him because he was able to involve himself in successful missions.  He agreed.
	We left, driving in two or three cars, but what I can remember is that in the car that I was in I was with Shologu and Nugcana to go to Umtata.
	When we arrived in Umtata we went to Norwood Security offices because they were already told about our coming and they were told to wait for us because we were coming with some information.  When we got there the Anti-Terrorism Unit was waiting for us in the offices in Norwood.
	W/O Spambo gave them a briefing, the one who was in charge of the Butterworth group.  He told us as to how to position ourselves in order to cover the area.  And there was another information that was brought by this Tami Moweli.  On that particular day he was in Lebode but he was on his way back and it was very important to arrest him before reaching his premises.  He should be arrested on the way, at least in Umtata without going further.
	We left, myself Shologu and Nugcana, we took our own position.  We waited there, waiting for this gentleman to come but he never appeared.  We changed our position.  As we were still standing there next to one of these Umtata hotels, a Mercedes Benz type of car came by and this car, Sthembele alighted and a man that was not known to me.
	When they got into this hotel, I'm not sure whether it was Ngcwa Nugcana or Shologu who was standing next to the door in the hotel, as he was checking on people who were in the hotel they saw one another, that is the officer and Sthembele.  Sthembele decided to go back to the car and this other gentleman proceeded to the hotel.
	When he got in the car we had already surrounded his car and requested him to get out of the car, Sthembele that is.  We instructed him to get into our car, to be the fourth person, and I told the driver, though I cannot remember if that was Nugcana or Shologu, I instructed him to drive towards the outskirts of Umtata, taking any direction.
	They drove.  We left Umtata.  When the car stopped it was during the night and I also did not know where we were.  As a person who was just next to the door I alighted first from the vehicle.  As we were driving along they were questioning him about his activities and Tami Moweli's whereabouts.
	I rushed, I alighted out of the vehicle and I tried to go to some valleys to relieve myself there.  They got out of the vehicle and they stood with him next to the car.  As I got in there I held myself there in the valley and I heard footsteps at some stage, as if there was this person running and I could see that they were coming to my direction and I stood up and then I saw that was Sthembele who was being chased by Chris and Nugcana.
	I said to myself this was the time, the opportunity that I had to use to fulfil or to do as instructed, as I was instructed to shoot him.  I drew my 7.65 pistol, I shot straight at the direction because he couldn't see me as he was coming straight towards my direction and he was still at a distance.  I fired at him.  I could hear him falling and I became so sure that I had hit him."