Lorraine Kekana, 30, was made to listen to the groans of her four dying children who had just had their throats slit, allegedly by their father.
Minutes before, her black husband had allegedly phoned her to ask whether she had any final words for her children before they died.
The four boys, aged 13, 10, six and four, were killed on Sunday morning at their home in Moletlane village in Limpopo’s Zebediela area.
Two of the boys were killed inside the sitting room and the other two in their bedroom.
Sitting hundreds of kilometres away in Pretoria, Kekana dropped the phone in shock.
Her husband can’t be named until he appears in court.
On Monday, Kekana lamented her tragic loss. She had earlier cried out aloud when Limpopo Safety MEC Mapula Mokaba-Phukwana, who had visited the family, spoke to her.
She said that on Saturday night he had driven with their children from Pretoria after his uncle had successfully mediated a domestic dispute between them. “When he left, we had resolved our dispute and we were all happy,” said Kekana.
The couple had been married since 2009, and she described him as a cool-headed man.
“He was cool. Although we had arguments, he never showed signs of aggression.”
The man’s father said his son was a churchgoing man. “I also wish him to get well and come back to answer for what he did,” said Phineus.
Mokaba-Phukwana said the government would help the family with their funeral arrangements.
The University of Cape Town has suspended the black student activist who threw ‘human excrement’ on the statue of Cecil John Rhodes, for threatening to assault a white woman lecturer on 1 May and stating: “”We must not listen to whites, we do not need their apologies, they have to be removed from UCT and have to be killed.”
Maxwele told The Times newspaper the outcome of his disciplinary hearing was “politically motivated”, and added, “We are being intimidated and silenced by the institution because we have said that decolonizing is a painful process. People are very angry that the statue got removed so now they are trying to do all they can to challenge us from all sides but we are not deterred.”
The university’s public relations director, Gerda Kruger, has released the following statement on behalf of the university.
Facts related to suspension & disciplinary charge against Mr Chumani Maxwele
5 June 2015
Media release
The facts related to the suspension and disciplinary charge:
Mr Chumani Maxwele is a registered University of Cape Town student. Ordinarily we treat student disciplinary matters as private. We have therefore, until now, not made public any details of the allegations against him. We have not done so, notwithstanding the fact that Mr Maxwele has made serious claims against a UCT lecturer – and if these claims are found to be baseless, they would be damaging and possibly actionable.
We have been guided by principle in this matter.
Mr Maxwele has, however, chosen to put these matters in the public domain. He has done so in papers filed on the 2nd of June 2015 with the Equality Court. As these matters are now in the public domain, we record that Mr Maxwele faces charges that on 1 May 2015 he insisted on being allowed into the Mathematics building after being informed that as it was a public holiday, all lecture theatres and classrooms were locked. Once inside the building, and after ascertaining that the said rooms were in fact locked, he is alleged to have:
raised his voice at the lecturer (who was in the department to mark student papers), stating that she was “a white woman who takes all the rights of the black students”;
shouted aggressively that “the statue fell; now it’s time for all whites to go”;
stated that he was not interested in the opinion of whites and that they should be killed;
continuously shouted and swore at the lecturer and two other witnesses to the incident;
started banging on the lecturer’s office door (after she had entered the office and locked her door) and when the lecturer opened the door, to have pushed her in his attempt to enter;
continued to shout and scream at her and bang on her desk; and
uttered the words: “We must not listen to whites, we do not need their apologies, they have to be removed from UCT and have to be killed.”
These charges are based on statements and complaints made by the lecturer on Saturday, 2 May 2015 (the day following the incident). Mr Maxwele was issued with charges after the witnesses had been interviewed on the following Wednesday, 6 May 2015, and he was issued with a provisional suspension order on Thursday, 7 May 2015. On the morning of Monday, 11 May 2015, 10 full days after the incident, Mr Maxwele gave a statement of complaint to the University’s investigations officer. The Cape Times chose to publish that statement in full on Tuesday, 12 May 2015.
The hearing of the complaints against Mr Maxwele, scheduled for 4 & 5 June 2015, has been postponed as Mr Maxwele’s legal representatives have submitted a medical certificate stating that Mr Maxwele is indisposed and will not be able to present himself for the matter until 9 June 2015.
On the matter of suspensions:
On the lecturer’s version, which is supported by witnesses and was filed the day after the alleged incident, the University considered Mr Maxwele’s alleged actions to be threatening and intimidating, and to have been unprovoked. Therefore the University had reason to perceive a potential risk to staff and students. This was the reason for the University’s provisional suspension order against Mr Maxwele. Had we not done this, the University might have found itself in a position of being vicariously liable for injury to staff or students for whom it has a duty of care, had this behaviour been repeated or, even worse, had Mr Maxwele acted on any of the threats he is alleged to have made.
On Mr Maxwele’s own version of the incident, the lecturer did not threaten or incite violence. Furthermore, Mr Maxwele’s complaint arrived 10 days after the alleged incident and investigators could find no witnesses to support his statement. This delay, as well as the content of his complaint, suggested that he did not feel any imminent danger or threat from the lecturer and no urgent action was required to be taken against the lecturer. Therefore there was no reason to restrain or suspend her. Mr Maxwele’s statement will still be processed.
UCT rejects the false notion, which has been expressed to media, that the disciplinary case against Mr Maxwele is related to or is a result of his recent protest action in regards to the Rhodes statue. The suspension and disciplinary case he is facing are based on an isolated incident. It is deceitful to claim that this isolated incident, his suspension and the disciplinary case he faces are related to or are a result of his protest action, or that UCT is victimising Mr Maxwele for his activism. It baseless and factually not a sustainable argument.
Not a single student at UCT (including Mr Maxwele) has been charged with any matter related to any of the protest actions that occurred from 9 March to midday on 18 May 2015. Amnesty was granted to all students and staff during this period.
A teacher and a pupil were killed after a gunman opened fire in one of the classrooms at Luvisi Primary School in Nquthu northern KwaZulu-Natal on Tuesday.
The South African Police Service said the teacher was in class giving lessons when he was attacked by an unknown gunman.
SAPS spokesman Jay Naicker said the teacher was shot in the classroom and passed away on the scene.
“Two other pupils were also injured during the shooting and were taken to hospital. One of them died on arrival at hospital.”
Police arrested three suspects in connection with the incident and have recovered a firearm.
The motive for the shooting is unknown at this stage and an investigation is under way.
KwaZulu-Natal Provincial Commissioner Lieutenant General Mmamonnye Ngobeni congratulated the Nquthu police for the swift arrests.
“Whilst we condemn the brutal manner in which this educator and pupil were killed, we are pleased that police were able to act swiftly.
“We will ensure that we throw the book at them,” she said.
Police have released an identikit of one of the men listed as a person of interest in the murder of 28-year-old Uitenhage teacher Jayde Panayiotou.
The poster of the black suspect was released by detectives on Sunday and followed photos of the two individuals captured on ATM security cameras last week.
“No arrests have been made at this stage,” Eastern Cape police spokesperson Sandra Janse van Rensburg told News24 on Sunday evening.
The Riebeek College Girl’s High School teacher was allegedly abducted outside her home in Kabega on Tuesday morning.
Panayiotou’s body was found by police just a day later in an isolated area near KwaNobuhle township in Uitenhage.
The 28 year old teacher was last seen waiting for a lift from her complex on Tuesday.
Thousands had gathered at the Kabega Park police station in Port Elizabeth last Wednesday night to express their condolences over the killing of teacher.
A dedicated task team – consisting of detectives, crime intelligence officers and forensic experts – was established to follow up on all leads and information.
A R50,000 reward for the arrests of the suspects has been offered.
In a country where violent deaths widely go unnoticed, South Africans have reacted with outrage and shock at Corrie Sanders’ murder on the weekend.
The 46-year-old former world heavyweight boxing champion was shot in a restaurant in Brits outside Pretoria on Saturday night and died in hospital eight hours later.
Sanders’ former wife Sunette said that Corrie, who was attending the birthday party of his nephew, was leaning over his daughter to protect her when he was shot.
With 40 murders or more occurring on most days, killings seldom make the national news, but Sanders’ death has sparked widespread condemnation.
More than most other sports in South Africa boxing has crossed racial barriers and southpaw Sanders, who was known as “The Sniper”, was one of the most popular sportpersons in the country.
Although always considered a promising fighter, Sanders was already 37 when he was given a crack at the WBO heavyweight title in 2003 and in a fight described later by Ring magazine as the upset of the year, put down Wladimir Klitschko four times before winning on a TKO in the second round.
Just over a year later he lost to Klitschko’s elder brother Vitali and although he fought a few times after that eighth round TKO, he retired in 2008 after a first round KO against fellow South African Osborne Machimana with a record of 38-4 with 31 knock-out victories.
He then turned his attention to becoming a successful businessman and a three-handicap golfer.
It is a mark of the high esteem with which Sanders was held by South African sportsman that tributes came from many top South African athletes.
Former Bafana Bafana player Mark Fish, who played in the Premier League and the Serie A, expressed his condolences to Sanders’ family. “So sad to hear about the tragic death of SA boxing great and a true gentleman Corrie Sanders.”
Olympic swimming champion Cameron van der Burgh said: “Rest in peace Corrie. A champion of the world,” while former Springbok captain John Smit tweeted: “Just woke up to news of Corrie Sanders having been murdered, what another senseless waste of life in SA. RIP Champion.”
A former captain of the South African cricket side, Pat Symcox said: “Feel sick to the core. Just so damn angry over Corrie’s murder. A helpless feeling and one that wants to scream out,” while another captain of the Proteas Shaun Pollock said: “Tragic news about Corrie Sanders. My thoughts are with his family. RIP.”
Vitaly Klitschko also paid a tribute, saying Sanders had a “dangerous” style of boxing. “Corrie Sanders was the most difficult opponent I ever fought.”
Unlike many other South African boxers who moved to the US to further their careers, Sanders chose to stay in South Africa, saying in an interview a few weeks ago that he never considered leaving.
“I loved this country too much to move to the US like other boxers. It might sound strange, but I felt I had more black fans than white.
“I think the two big sports in the black community are boxing and soccer, and whenever I was out and about, they would stop me and want to chat. That was always very humbling.”
Sanders’ death is the latest in a number of high-profile murders that have shocked South Africa.
In 2005 Sanders’ stable mate Msukisi Sikali, who held the world title in the junior flyweight, flyweight, and super flyweight divisions was stabbed to death as he attempted to fight off a group of muggers.
The father of South African international Doctor Khumalo was killed three years earlier, while reggae star Lucky Dube was murdered in a botched highjacking in 2007.
The boxers’ death will once again ignite discussion in South Africa about the high crime rate and the failure of the government to deal with it, even though they say the statistics show a slight drop.
However, for Sanders’ family, like the relatives of many others killed in senseless crimes, the statistics are little comfort. – DPA
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