Zille denies ‘canvassing’
|Published
‘ASSAULT’: Zille manhandled outside the school
DA federal council chairperson Helen Zille has hit back after being manhandled and detained by a cop on Monday, saying she was accused of canvassing at a polling queue.
Zille, aged 70, was dragged out of the Fernwood Primary School voting station in Bethelsdorp by members of the Nelson Mandela Bay police.
Late on Monday night Zille took to her Facebook page and said her task was to greet voters and to ’walk the queues’, as she does during elections.
“It involves encouraging people to stay in the queue, no matter how long it takes and how frustrated they get, so that they can cast their vote rather than go home.
“I was very careful to ensure that I did not canvas anywhere within the IEC’s boundary line.”
She said she visited the school at about 9.30am, where she raised the issue of the long queues with the Presiding Officer Kholiwe Yolanda Latola to no avail.
At about 12.30pm she returned to the school only to find the queue even longer.
She said two ANC party agents and Latola accused her of canvassing, which she denied.
“I said that was not true, and told her not to accuse me of this when she had no evidence to that effect at all.”
This was when Zille was approached by a police officer who she referred to as Warrant Officer A Botha who she claimed did not give her a chance to say a word.
“I presented my authorisation...
“He instructed me to leave, grabbed me and frog-marched me out of the building.
The Independent Police Investigative Directorate (Ipid) said it is investigating a case of assault against the cop.
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