The police are looking for the men who attacked the Deputy Speaker of the National Assembly Pono Moatlhodi on Monday evening, Officer Commanding No. 3 District Theriso Thatayotlhe, has confirmed.

They are also working around the clock to establish the motive behind the attack – whether these were common criminals or if it was a politically-motivated attack.

By virtue of his job, Moatlhodi – a brutally honest straight talker who is also Member of Parliament for Tonota – could have made many enemies in and out of Parliament. Yet again, considering the rate of crime in the country, the Deputy Speaker may just be another victim of this wave. According to Thatayotlhe, after finishing Parliamentary business on Monday,

Moatlhodi walked home to the Parliamentary Village. But, just when he approached his home, a red vehicle pulled over. When Moatlhodi tried making sense of what was happening, two men alighted from the car and walked towards him. They did not say anything to Moatlhodi but one unexpectedly hurled a stone at him. The stone hit the Deputy Speaker on the forehead leaving him with minor injuries.

“The men then ran off leaving him there, they did not rob him of anything. He was taken to the hospital and was discharged the same day,” Thatayotlhe said. By Tuesday afternoon, the police had not made any arrests and were still trying to figure out the motive behind the attack. The police boss said it was not common for people to get attacked in the vicinity of the Parliamentary Village, as it is a high-security area. He said the case was the first of its kind this year.