Cape Town - DA youth member Luzuko Mngqibisa escaped unharmed, but lost all his clothing when his Tambo Square home was set alight in what appears to be a politically motivated attack. The arsonists left Mngqibisa a note in which they called him a “dog of Helen Zille”.
Police spokesman Lieutenant Colonel Andre Traut said a case of arson had been opened following the incident, which took place early on Saturday.
A visibly shaken Mngqibisa said he was awoken by the smell of smoke.
“The first thing I saw was that my clothing, kept in bags near a window, were on fire. I tried to grab what I could but the flames burnt my fingertips. I was forced to run outside without anything on,” he said.
He ran next door to check on his parents, and once he had confirmed they were safe, he called his neighbours for help.
They managed to put out the fire fairly quickly, and Mngqibisa said he rushed back to try to save whatever he could.
“All my clothes went up in flames. All I have left are the clothes I’m wearing now, but luckily there was no other damage.”
A broken bottle and some fabric doused in petrol, which were found inside the shack, are believed to have been used to start the fire.
A pair of black gloves, which smelled of petrol, were found outside.
Mngqibisa said a handwritten letter had been left near the door.
“The letter said ‘we are going to kill you, you dog of Helen Zille’, and ‘leave your people alone’, meaning my attempts to get more DA support in the area.
“They also said they would come back to get me if I continued to support the DA.
“They think I’m a traitor because I’m black and support the DA and its leader, Premier Helen Zille,” he told Weekend Argus.
The letter has since been turned over to the police.
Mngqibisa said he may now have to leave his home for fear of another attack on himself or his parents.
One of the City of Cape Town’s portable toilets was also left in front of his door, an apparent reference to the protesters who have dumped human faeces at various sites in the city in the past weeks, including outside the provincial Parliament and at Cape Town International Airport.
Faeces were also thrown at a bus in which Zille was travelling while visiting a green economic event in Khayelitsha earlier this month.
Grant Pascoe, mayco member for tourism, events and marketing, said yesterday they would wait for the investigation to be completed before they decided whether the attack was criminally or politically motivated.
“For now we will wait for the outcome of the investigation. There is definitely evidence it may have been politically motivated, but we’ll wait until we have more information before acting,” he said.
ANC provincial secretary Songezo Mjongile condemned the attack, warning that violence was not a solution to any problem.
“South Africa is a democratic country, and everyone has the right to associate with any organisation they choose. Whatever party you support, DA or ANC or any others, we will condemn all forms of violence that take place in our communities. If they have a dispute they must participate in consultative engagement and resolve it peacefully,” he said.
Mngqibisa said he was unable to identify the arsonists but believes they must have been watching him for some time.
Two weeks ago, he said, he saw two men get out of a car and walk towards his home and try to look into the window.
“They covered their heads and faces with the hoods of their tops and when I went outside to confront them, they immediately ran back to their car and sped off,” he said.
Weekend Argus