What was meant to be a normal Tuesday afternoon campaign for Deputy President Paul Mashatile turned chaotic after a man kicked them out of his house in Khayelitsha, Cape Town.

Mashatile, who is in the Western Cape for the African National Congress’ 113th-anniversary celebrations, was conducting a door-to-door visit in the township when the incident occurred. 

In a widely circulated video, Mashatile can be seen sitting and listening as one of the activists he was with is talking. A man holding a child storms into the house, demanding that the gathered crowd leave. The man, known simply as Mabhuti, can be heard saying to the entourage, “All of you must leave!” 

Why? It is alleged that the man had been blocked from entering the house by Mashatile’s security. “You cannot tell me I cannot enter my own home!” he yelled, clearly not backing down. A woman’s voice can be heard in the background trying to calm him down, explaining that Mashatile’s bodyguards didn’t know who he was. 


Mashatile has since apologised to the man for how his security team treated him.

“We are sorry that my bodyguards pushed your son. They were not aware that he lived here. Please send our apologies to him. I’m so sorry.”

This isn’t the first time the security detail attached to Mashatile has been in the press. In July 2023, eight members of his VIP Protection unit allegedly assaulted four men. The reason for the assault is still not determined, and the eight members have since been arrested and released on bail, with the trial now ongoing.