By Marcus Moloko
Emfuleni Local Municipality employee Matha Mani Rantsofu was shot and killed in Vanderbijlpark last month in a brazen daylight shooting.
Rantsou was laid to rest on Saturday.
Rantsofu worked in the finance department of the Emfuleni Municipality as a finance clerk.
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Calls are mounting for stronger protection of whistleblowers after the murder of the 39-year-old clerk, who was shot dead in an execution‑style attack on 30 March 2026 while servicing her car at a tyre fitment centre near the Vanderbijlpark Police Station.
CCTV footage, widely circulated on social media, shows a gunman approaching her from behind while she was on her phone and firing five shots, one directly to her head.
Police spokesperson Colonel Dimakatso Nevhuhulwi said the assailant fled in a blue Volkswagen Polo. Gauteng police have registered a murder case, and no arrests have been made.
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The Political Killings Task Team has taken over the investigation. Gauteng police spokesperson Noxolo Kweza said that the motive remains officially “unknown,” although investigations are ongoing.
Community members allege Mani had been targeted for exposing tender irregularities within the municipality.
Service delivery failures have long plagued Emfuleni, which has been placed under administration at least twice in recent years.
The municipality has reportedly dismissed speculations linking Mani’s death to her work.