This is according to the North West MEC for Community Safety, Mpho Motlhabane. He was delivering a keynote address during the security cluster parade where the national police minister, Kehla Sitole, was visiting the province to asses the state of readiness for tomorrow's elections.

He adds that he was left with a bitter pill to swallow after the province was declared as a hotspot by the police minister, Bheki Cele, last week.

Motlhabane says what disappointed him more was the three incidents where a school was set alight in Kraaipan in the Ratlou municipality, while three schools were shut down and an IEC vehicle which was partially burned in Tshaneng in Ganyesa, with the most recent incident one in Potchefstroom where two ballot boxes were set alight.

Motlhabane says although the government understands that people have genuine reasons and the right to protest, that does not give them a right to disrupt, destroy and even threaten others.

Meanwhile, police spokesperson, Sabata Mokgwabone, says as part of ensuring safe and secure elections, as well as dealing with acts of criminality, the police in Ganyesa arrested 21 suspects on Monday, 6 May 2019, for the contravention of the Electoral Act.

He says the suspects, aged between 17 and 41 years, were arrested in the Mmadinonyane village near Ganyesa for torching a vehicle belonging to the (IEC) Area Manager.

Mokgwabone says, according to information available at this stage, reports suggest that the area manager and another official were driving separately in their vehicles, with one loaded with IEC voting material.  

"They were allegedly stopped by members of the community who robbed the pair of their cell phones before setting the two vehicles alight, both of which were damaged as a result".

"The incident led to damage to the voting material that was loaded in one of the vehicles".

"A police vehicle that was escorting the two vehicles was allegedly pelted with stones," he says.

"Subsequent to investigations launched after the incident, 10 female and 11 male suspects were arrested and are expected to appear in the Ganyesa Magistrate's Court on Thursday 9 May 2019, on charges of the contravention of the Electoral Act and malicious damage to property and robbery, Mokgwabone concludes.

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