Police response in Cwecwe rape case under fire from Committee

THE police's response to the rape of 7-year-old Cwecwe came under scrutiny during a Portfolio Committee on Police meeting this week.

- THOBEKA NGEMA AND LESEDI JONGA

EFF MP Babalwa Mathulelwa said she had been in contact with the victim and her family since the rape, which took place at Bergview College in Matatiele, Eastern Cape, in October last year.

She said on January 15, the EFF held a picket at the school, and the principal responded to their memorandum sent on January 20.

Mathulelwa said they returned to the police station to open a back-up case because police were not treating the incident with urgency. However, police said they could not do so because of duplication.

She said those around, except the principal, were willing to provide their DNA and other necessary samples.

"The principal must be arrested, and then the investigation can happen," Mathulelwa said.

She said: "Since October until today, there has been no development."