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In 1994, when there was no voters roll, the people of Baga Mothibi, situated in the North West from Bophutatswana, were ferried on truck and tractors to go and vote in the then Northern Cape towns of Jan Kempdorp, Warrenton and Barkley West, this was because the ANC leadership, led by Popo Molefe and Manne Dipico, were not convinced the coloured people will vote for the ANC, winning the two provinces was important to the people of Ba ga Mothibi because they have wanted to be incorporated into NC.
A promise was then given that once the two provinces have been won, then it will open a conversation to heed the call of Baga Mothibi. In 1996/7 then President Nelson Mandela, commissioned Shubane to look into that possibility, the results and recommendations which was never discussed afterwards.
In 2006, the township of Pampierstad started a demand to be incorporated which the people of Ba ga Mothibi joined, to demand, that wherever you take Pampierstad to, you take it along with the fourteen villages attached to it. This demand fell in deaf ears. Pampierstad was subsequently incorporated into NC in 2007, the Baga Mothibi continued to knock peacefully on every door to no success. Letters were written to the then Minister of Local Government, Sydney Mufamadi, ANC Luthuli House under Kgalema Motlanthe, Premiers of the NC and NW, Hazel Jenkins and Maureen Modiselle, the leadership of the Demarcation Forum met with every strategic leader who agreed, the demand make sense; people are turned away from using Pampierstad SASSA offices because they are from the NW, they are turned back from the Pampierstad Clinic because they are from NW, learners cannot get transport subsidy in NC schools because they are from NW, the municipality of Phokwane is 15 km from the villages and the Greater Taung Municipality is more than 40 km away, the nearest hospital in Hartswater is 15km and that of Taung is 40km away, the tax base of the Baga Mothibi people is in the NC, they spent almost 905 of their disposable income in the NC.
The late Minister of COGTA, Sicelo Shiceka led a breakthrough in this case, a cabinet commissioned referendum was held to test the views of the people, and it came out 99% of the people wanted to be incorporated into NC, the 1% was ANC leaders who went to an extend of ferrying people on buses to the referendum to disrupt the proceedings both of the SABC Motsweding FM and that led by COGTA, what happened to that report to date remains anonymous.
A memorandum of Understanding was signed between the two provinces and Task team established to lead the incorporation, to date, nothing.
The people of Khutsong, went on rampage after us, but their demands were met, many communities that have went out to burn public property, stopped schools, etc have their demands met but to the civil people of Baga Mothibi they will never be heard because they are a non-violent, law abiding citizens, threats such as not voting in the last elections were diffused with such a tactic that the cabinet have heard our demands and its for the last time we will be voting in the NW, five years have come and August 3 is here, they are still going to vote in NW.
Maybe only violence, whether televised or not, will help.
Masego Khumalo- Chairperson of Ba ga Mothibi Demarcation Forum
