Amnesty Hearings — Durban — 1998-04-17

MR WILLS: You then lay and waited for an opportunity for some time I believe, I don't think this was clear in Mr Mkhize's affidavit but he indicated that eventually in any event he was concerned about where the car was parked and so he went together with Mr Cele and they moved the car and they disappeared from the scene leaving you and Israel, is that correct?

ROMEO MBUSO MBAMBO: That is correct with Constable Mtetwa as well.

MR WILLS: Now did Mtetwa know what was going to go on that night?  When I say that, sorry, when I say that as you say in your affidavit that you discussed this after the killing of the four youths at the shebeen, you got back into the car and then a discussion arose concerning Sergeant Dlamini is that correct?

ROMEO MBUSO MBAMBO: That is correct, he knew very well.

MR WILLS: From that time onwards?

ROMEO MBUSO MBAMBO: Yes.

MR WILLS: And did he object to accompanying you on this mission?

ROMEO MBUSO MBAMBO: He was prepared as we were.

MR WILLS: So would you regard him as being as part of your group with the same common purpose of killing the sergeant?

ROMEO MBUSO MBAMBO: That was not his first operation with us.

MR WILLS: Now is it not so that he has been - he cannot be prosecuted in terms of this incident because he was used as a 204 witness, a Section 204 witness in your trial against you.

ROMEO MBUSO MBAMBO: That is correct.

MR WILLS: And he was granted immunity from prosecution by the Judge in that trial?

ROMEO MBUSO MBAMBO: That is correct.

MR WILLS: Now, okay from the time Brian left, can you tell us what happened that evening at Sergeant Dlamini's house?

ROMEO MBUSO MBAMBO: Dina left after we had ...[inaudible] the two doors and the wife to Sergeant Dlamini had fled with a baby on her back and I was in the kitchen, Israel at the front and Mtetwa was standing.  We spent about an hour or even more.

MR WILLS: Sorry, did you say where Mtetwa was standing?

ROMEO MBUSO MBAMBO: He was standing inside the house, he was not necessarily inside the house, he was outside the house a distance between the door from the front to the kitchen door.  He was standing next to the kitchen window and I was in the kitchen at the door.  The doors were open by that time.
	We spent about an hour there, quiet, there was darkness in the house and we didn't know in which room Sergeant Dlamini was and he must have thought that we had left and when he started moving we could then identify in which room he was.  We moved in and Israel and myself met on the corridor, Hlungwane moved in front of me and I went into his room.  Hlungwane went to his room and they met at the bedroom door and he shot Israel, he shot Hlungwane there - Hlungwane shot Israel there.  Israel Hlungwane fired the shot.

CHAIRPERSON: I think you've got the names - you've got the names, you said you and Israel then went in, perhaps if you can take it up from there?

MR WILLS: Sorry, Mr Chairperson, if I can just place on record that is - I'm advised that it isn't the witness who is getting the names mixed up it was actually a problem with the interpretation.

CHAIRPERSON: Oh, sorry, well perhaps if we can just go over that again from the time that yourself and Israel went, moved from your positions where you were and went into the house after you had identified the room in which you thought Sergeant Dlamini was?

ROMEO MBUSO MBAMBO: I came from the kitchen towards the corridor and Israel came from the sitting room headed towards the corridor and this corridor led to the bedroom, Sergeant Dlamini's bedroom.  Israel was in front of me and I was following him and he met Sergeant Dlamini at the door to his bedroom and then Israel Hlungwane shot Sergeant Dlamini on the spot.  He fell and we then walked out and when we got to the door we discovered that Israel's gun did not have bullets.
	I don't know whether he shot him twice or once so we did not have certainty as to whether he was dead or not.  Then Constable Mtetwa gave Israel his 9 mm pistol.  Israel went back into the house and shot him once and came back and we left.

MR WILLS: Mr Mbambo, is it not correct and this is something that you've told me and it doesn't appear in your affidavit, is it not correct that Sergeant Dlamini was fighting right until the moment of his death and insulting you and being in fact quite courageous right until the point of his death?

ROMEO MBUSO MBAMBO: That is correct.

MR WILLS: He didn't die as a cowering dog, he was a brave man when he died, is that correct?

ROMEO MBUSO MBAMBO: That is correct, he died like a hero because why, he fought back.

CHAIRPERSON: Mr Wills, I've been requested by various people because of the heat to take a five minute adjournment at about 3 o'clock, would this be a convenient time?  Just to take a short adjournment so that people maybe catch a benefit of a bit of a breeze outside for a short while and be slightly refreshed and then we can start again.  We'll take a very short adjournment.  Thank you.
COMMITTEE ADJOURNS
ON RESUMPTION

CHAIRPERSON: Weather or not, we can proceed.

ROMEO MBUSO MBAMBO: (s.u.o.)

MR WILLS: Yes thank you very much Mr Chairman.
	Mr Mbambo you received confirmation from Mr Hlungwane  that Sergeant Dlamini was in fact dead, you left the scene, where did you go to thereafter?

ROMEO MBUSO MBAMBO: Thereafter we went to my house.

MR WILLS: And did you meet any of the local leadership at any stage after that?

ROMEO MBUSO MBAMBO: Yes I think the following morning if I'm not mistaken it was a Sunday.  I went to report at Mrs Umbiasi's house, if I remember correctly she told me that Brigadier Msemela had already called and he was indeed very pleased about the death of Sergeant Dlamini.

MR WILLS: And what about Mrs Umbiasi, what was her reaction?

ROMEO MBUSO MBAMBO: She was quite pleased as usual.

MR WILLS: Sorry, Mr Chairperson, I wonder if make this request for the witness, he's requested if he can take off his jacket while he's giving evidence?

CHAIRPERSON: Yes certainly Mr Mbambo you can take off your jacket if you wish.

MR WILLS: You've indicated on several occasions now when these reports were made to various officials that they were delighted, I think you've used the words or happy with your activities.  How did this make you feel as a police constable?

ROMEO MBUSO MBAMBO: It made me very happy and it motivated me to do my job properly and without any hesitation that everything that we were engaged in pleased our organisation.  I was very proud with my job, there are quite a number of things that I can enumerate for that.  If we were say for example at meetings, even in the presence of dignitaries that I did not know, if these dignitaries that I knew introduced me to the ones that I did not know, they would present me as one of their heroes and they will be fighting over who should talk to me first to such an extent that there are Members of Parliament who did not receive the same courtesy that I and my fellow colleagues received which courtesy we received from IFP leaders who were involved in our activities.  I have explained before that even at the police station I was a Detective Constable but all the policemen knew that I was respected as an officer.

MR WILLS: Thank you, Mr Mbambo, I want to turn now to paragraph 119 of your affidavit page 56 of the record which is entitled "Attempt by KZP to cover up the killings".  Now we've heard evidence from Mr Mkhize which isn't necessary to repeat just for you to confirm that effectively you and he were called in to - sorry my memories fading now - you were called into Major Mkulu's office?

ROMEO MBUSO MBAMBO: Yes that is correct.

MR WILLS: And essentially the killings of the recent past were discussed and what was further discussed was ways in which the matters could be covered up, is that correct?

ROMEO MBUSO MBAMBO: Yes that is so.