Chairperson, Cope is extremely concerned by an incident which took place on Tuesday, 16 February 2010, in Durban when the provincial chairperson of the youth movement, Mr Mthokozisi Myende, was trapped at gunpoint by a member of the VIP protection unit in Durban. Mr Myende was a bystander at a car accident in which the VIP protection unit member was involved.
It is alleged that the VIP policeman caused the accident, but denied this at the scene. Mr Myende, who witnessed the incident, pointed out that the officer had been at fault. The policeman is alleged to have drawn his service pistol, pointed it at Mr Myende's head and threatened to shoot him. A shaken Mr Myende has laid charges of crimen injuria and pointing a firearm at a policeman at the Greenwood Park Police Station. We are concerned to note that the government has, on many occasions, prevented the media from reporting incidents where innocent people have been caught in the crossfire. We are grateful that the Cope youth provincial chairperson was not shot. This policeman was trained to protect the innocent, not to use his service pistol to threaten people. Thank you.