Nelson Mandela Bay DA councillor Rano Kayser (44) has said he could not escape the incident that left him bleeding during a council meeting in October 2016 – and it was for this reason he wanted Andile Lungisa to pay up.

A Weekend Post report says Eastern Cape High Court (Gqeberha) Judge Elna Revelas has granted an order for Lungisa to pay Kayser R844 000 for the pain and suffering the former ANC councillor caused when he smashed a glass water jug over Kayser’s head in front of their peers.

Kayser testified that the incident had left him feeling ‘humiliated, embarrassed and weak’, as if he were a failure.

He told the court that he had lost his confidence, as people in Nelson Mandela Bay and those on social media, no longer recognised him as a man who grew up in the ranks of politics, but as ‘Andile Lungisa’s victim’.

‘I can’t get away from the incident, not even when I go to the barber because the scar above my left temple is in the way of my hair line,’ he said.

Asked by Revelas if this scar was a result of the glass jug being smashed against his head, Kayser said ‘yes’.

Lungisa is out on parole after serving just 75 days of his two-year sentence for assault.

The Weekend Post report notes he was released on 1 December due to a special remission of sentence and easing of overcrowding in prisons amid the Covid-19 pandemic. During his testimony, Advocate Allan Frost played the video of the assault.

Revelas described the footage as distressing. She also wanted to know if council meetings were always as chaotic, to which Kayser said it had been the first incident of its kind.

Meanwhile, clinical psychologist Dr Ian Meyer testified that Kayser suffered from post-traumatic stress disorder. Meyer had compiled a report after conducting a psychological assessment of Kayser in August 2019. Asked if moving to a different city would help Kayser deal with the trauma, Meyer likened it to a person who had suffered a traumatic car accident.

‘While the driver can take an alternative route to avoid reminders of his trauma, too many aspects of Kayser’s everyday life can trigger reminders of the assault,’ Meyer said.

Kayser’s attorney, Lunen Mayer, said he was overjoyed with the speedy outcome of the matter. Lungisa was ordered to pay R844 000, which would cover Kayser’s claim for pain and suffering, medical expenses and a future loss of income.

Lungisa, who was not present while testimony was led, said afterwards that he had not been notified about the case. He said he would appeal the judgment.

Full Weekend Post report (subscription needed)