TSHWANE: ALL hell broke loose as opera singer Sbongile Mngoma and her colleagues were ruffled up by Tshwane police.
The commotion happened on the afternoon of Tuesday, 2 November outside the Sports, Arts and Culture Department in Tshwane.
It seems Sbongile was stripped half-naked by the police.
In a video, the police can be seen pressing her hard against the brick wall. They also drag her back and forth.
She keeps asking them if they are arresting her or not, but the cops do not respond.
Sbongile was part of the artists staging a protest outside the department’s offices.
One of the artists, Brian Ntombela, who was also seen being manhandled by police, said: “We arrived in the morning as per our agreement last week. But we were not allowed inside the building. Instead, they sent security guards for us. Before we knew it, there were eight police vehicles. We were then shoved around for no reason. Vusi (Mkhize), who called the meeting, also refused to meet with us. Instead, he left the building.”
Last week, South African news outlet Daily Sun reported about the meeting between the department and the artists, where Sbongile presented the artists’ memorandum calling for the resignation of Minister Nathi Mthethwa, department director-general Vusi Mkhize, and chief director of cultural development Charles Mabaso.
They also demanded the release of a National Arts Council forensic report, but Mkhize refused to release it. He then assured artists he would meet them, but on Tuesday 2 November he and his officials allegedly refused to do so.
WATCH: ALL hell broke loose as opera singer Sbongile Mngoma and her colleagues were ruffled up by Tshwane police. The commotion happened on the afternoon of Tuesday, 2 November outside the Sports, Arts and Culture Department in Tshwane. pic.twitter.com/ZjaJbzJOPw
— Daily Sun Entertainment News (@DailysunCelebs) November 2, 2021
Captain Kay Makhubele said: “At the moment we are not aware of any protest or commotion between artists and the police.”
Masechaba Khumalo, the Spokesperson for Minister of Sports Arts and Culture, Nathi Mthethwa said: “The meeting was postponed to 5 November 2021 to accommodate other sector organizations so that the Department of Sport, Arts and Culture can engage in a broader sectoral meeting. This was communicated and Ms. Mngoma was well aware of this but insisted on making her way to the DSAC offices. ”
