 (1).png){kind=spacer}
2 months ago
9
Bitou Local Municipality deputy mayor and Ikhwezi Political Movement leader Nokuzola Kolwapi firing what appears to be a firearm during a cultural celebration in Plettenberg Bay.
Supplied/video screengrab
- Firearms advocacy organisations have condemned Bitou Municipality Deputy Mayor Nokuzola Kolwapi after videos showed her firing shots into the air during a cultural celebration in Plettenberg Bay, calling the act reckless and dangerous.
- Gun Free SA, Action Society and NARFO said that whether the object was a real firearm or a replica, discharging it in a public space normalised gun violence and undermined firearm safety laws.
- Police have opened a case of pointing a firearm and confirmed that detectives are investigating the incident.
Gun control and firearm owner organisations have condemned the actions of Bitou Municipality Deputy Mayor Nokuzola Kolwapi after videos surfaced showing her firing what appears to be a firearm during a cultural celebration in Plettenberg Bay.
In the widely shared footage, she is seen firing several shots into the air while ululating, as people cheered around her. In another clip, children are visible nearby, some covering their ears as the shots ring out.
Kolwapi defended her conduct, insisting that she fired a toy gun and accused critics of using the incident to score political points.
She argued that the act was symbolic and not intended as a threat.
But Dr Stanley Maphosa, the executive director of Gun Free South Africa, said that regardless of whether the object was a real firearm or a replica, firing it in a crowded public space was reckless and dangerous.
Maphosa added:
South Africa faces a gun violence crisis, with an average of 33 people shot dead every day. We cannot afford public figures normalising gun use in public spaces, even symbolically.
“The deputy mayor’s justification is deeply concerning. Guns are not symbols of empowerment or cultural identity - they are weapons designed to kill. If she wants to address violence against women, she should be advocating for stronger firearms control, not glorifying gun use at a public celebration.”
He warned that when political leaders discharged firearms - real or otherwise - at celebrations or rallies, it trivialised dangerous behaviour and undermined efforts to curb gun violence.
“This is precisely the kind of conduct the Firearms Control Act seeks to prevent, as the recent Julius Malema conviction demonstrated. No one, regardless of political standing, should be above the law when it comes to firearm safety,” Maphosa said.
Malema was convicted in October by the East London Regional Court on charges that included discharging a firearm in a public space and reckless endangerment following a similar incident at a 2018 rally, despite his claim that the gun was a toy.
WATCH | Cops probing videos of ‘gun-wielding’ Bitou deputy mayor
He is due to be sentenced in January and indicated he would appeal.
Action Society spokesperson Kaylynn Palm echoed those concerns, describing Kolwapi’s behaviour as irresponsible and unacceptable.
Palm said:
At a time when children and innocent people are being shot and killed in our communities, any public official handling a firearm in this way shows a blatant disregard for life and the law.
“Firearms are not ceremonial props; they are lethal weapons governed by legislation for a reason.”
Elmo Scheffer, the founder and executive chairperson of the National Association for Responsible Firearm Owners (Narfo), said the incident risked damaging public confidence not only in firearm regulation but in governance more broadly.
“When senior public officials engage in conduct that appears to disregard firearm safety and the rule of law, it damages public confidence not only in firearm regulation, but in governance itself,” Scheffer added.
READ | Malema not afraid of prison - but vows to appeal conviction
“Narfo believes this matter cannot be treated lightly. The deputy mayor should be suspended from her official duties, pending the outcome of the investigation, and the criminal justice process must be allowed to run its course without political interference.”
Scheffer said that if the object used was confirmed to be a firearm as defined in the Firearms Control Act, negligent or reckless use constituted a criminal offence. A conviction could result in a fine, imprisonment for up to five years, or both, and may also lead to a declaration of unfitness to possess a firearm under section 103 of the act.
Police spokesperson Warrant Officer Christopher Spies stated that Kwanokuthula detectives were investigating a case of pointing a firearm following the incident in Sajini Street on Sunday morning.
“Police members attended the premises after a video of the incident circulated on social media. The investigation is at an early stage, and no arrests have been made,” Spies said.
