Worker shoots striking colleague

2008-05-10 10:06

Johannesburg - A municipal worker was arrested for attempted murder after he allegedly shot a protester during an ongoing strike in the Tshwane municipality, Pretoria police said on Saturday.

"A 49-year-old municipal worker for the city of Tshwane came to report for duty at about 22:00 last night (Friday) and as he tried to pull the truck out of the premises a group of striking workers tried to stop him and pull him out of the truck when he pulled out a gun," said police spokesperson Captain Dumisani Ndlazi.

"He shot one of the protesters, a man, in the stomach and he was taken to the Pretoria Academic hospital," he said.

The driver was arrested, charged with attempted murder and would appear in the Pretoria Magistrate's Court on Monday."

The SA Municipal Workers Union has engaged in a strike action since Monday.

The protesters were demanding that the city halts its restructuring process, employ all its employees directly and stop investigating the possibility of outsourcing the bus service.

- SAPA