The mayor of Thembelihle Municipality, Marnus Visser, has been remanded in custody following his appearance in the Philipstown Magistrate’s Court on January 8, after being accused of assaulting his girlfriend.
THE MAYOR of Thembelihle Municipality, Marnus Visser, has been remanded in custody following his appearance in the Philipstown Magistrate’s Court on January 8, after being accused of assaulting his girlfriend.
The alleged incident is believed to have occurred on January 5.
Visser is a member of the Siyathemba Community Movement (SCM), which is in coalition with the ANC at Thembelihle Municipality.
National Prosecuting Authority (NPA) regional spokesperson Mojalefa Senokoatsane said the 36-year-old accused has been charged with assault with intent to cause grievous bodily harm.
“The accused and the 37-year-old complainant were in a relationship and lived together. It is alleged that the accused assaulted the complainant after accusing her of cheating,” Senokoatsane stated.
He added that Visser would remain in custody until his next court appearance, scheduled for next week.
“He is expected to apply for bail on January 15. Investigations led by the police are continuing in this matter,” Senokoatsane noted.
Both the EFF and FF+ have called for Visser to step down and urged that disciplinary action be taken against him.
EFF councillor at Thembelihle Municipality, Leonard Makenna, on Wednesday requested the Speaker to urgently convene a special council meeting to elect a new mayor.
“The mayor of Thembelihle Local Municipality, Marnus Visser, is currently in custody due to allegations of gender-based violence. This unfortunate situation has brought disrepute to our municipality and requires immediate attention,” he said.
Makenna believed that a motion of no confidence should be brought against Visser.
“A new mayor must be elected promptly. It is crucial that we take swift and decisive action to restore trust and confidence in our municipality,” he added.
Neither Thembelihle Municipality nor the SCM had responded to media enquiries at the time of publication.
