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Case against member of parliament

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A charge of crimen injuria was opened at the Warrenton police station

THE SCHOOL governing body (SGB) chairperson of a primary school in Warrenton is refusing to accept an apology that was posted on social media by a member of the National Assembly, after he allegedly verbally abused her and made remarks about her private parts.

A charge of crimen injuria was opened at the Warrenton police station on Monday while complaints were lodged with the ANC, the ANC Women’s League, parliament and the Premier.

Calls were made on social media for the ANC member, Dikgang Stock, to step down from parliament after a video of the incident went viral on social media.

The complainant, Setshego Katz, pointed out that she wished to put an end to women abuse and gender based violence.

“The matter has gone too far. Regret always comes in hindsight and as a person with rights, I refuse to remain silent. How was I supposed to see the apology if I was unfriended on Facebook. I was insulted in public, in front of ANC members and my husband.

“If he dared to physically attack me, my husband would be sitting in jail right now.

“The personal attack against me was unwarranted and degrading to all women. He called me a ‘useless’ SGB chairperson, told me that I have a ‘stinky vagina’ and that I was in more than one failed marriage, while he had only ever been married to one woman. How can it be expected of me to stay in abusive marriages? He dug into my past and tore into my personal circumstances, while it had nothing to do with the issue at hand.”

Katz added that she approached Stock on December 30 at the Warrenton Primary School where the ANC Youth League Francis Baard’s regional soccer tournament was being held.

“While they were playing the finals, I noticed that the devil’s fork fence had been vandalised when a soccer ball was kicked over the fence. We experienced previous break-ins at the school where the children’s iPads were stolen. The security breach creates opportunities for thieves to break into the school. We are a public school and we work hard to raise enough funds to keep the school going.

“At half time, I approached Stock out of respect, as a leader, with the view of finding a solution to the problem at hand. I requested him not to send his boys to remove the devil’s forks and that he was liable for any damages. I told him that even if ‘I was nothing’ and he was someone of importance, this argument would not end well.”

She pointed out that anyone who hired the school grounds had the responsibility of ensuring that it was handed back in the same condition.

“The toilets were vandalised on December 16 and I have video footage of boys trespassing through the broken devil’s fork fence.”

Katz believed that it was “unbecoming” of a member of parliament to behave in this fashion.

In his apology that was posted on Facebook, Stock acknowledged that as a public representative, the “situation should have been avoided”.

“I sincerely apologise to Faith Setshego Katz, her family, all women, the entire ANC family and the people of the Northern Cape who are disturbed and angered over the incident of December 30.”

He added that he was trying to arrange a meeting with Katz, her children and husband to extend a personal apology.

“I regret what I said and I deeply apologise for the pain it has caused. As a person of moral standing in the community and out of respect to all women, I am owning up to my mistakes. I hope that the complainant will accept my sincere apology and I am reaching out in an effort to amicably resolve the matter.”

He believed that the video was “taken out of context”.

“I do not wish to comment on the contents of the video, I did not use vulgar words. However, as a public representative, I take responsibility for my emotional outburst.”

Stock explained that he overreacted when he was confronted during the final soccer match.

“The tournament started on December 26 and concerns were only raised on December 30. There is an open space behind the tree and we sent some of the boys to fetch the ball that was kicked out of the yard.”

He stated that the devil’s fork fence was “in good order”.

“Nothing was broken. I reported the matter to the principal and we cleaned the grounds once the tournament was concluded.”

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