Durban - A terrified Clare Estate family have been forced to flee their home after a petrol bomb was thrown at the house in Burnwood Road on Saturday night. Two cars were destroyed.
The Arumugam family are suspected by neighbouring shack dwellers of tipping off the eThekwini Municipality about new shacks being erected in the area and that this is what prompted the attack.
Five members of the family were at home when the attack happened at about 11pm.
They had been verbally threatened earlier in the day and accused of being izimpimpi (informers) for the municipality.
The municipality had been removing shacks and destroyed several on Saturday.
Homeowner, Lee Arumugam, 46, whose house is on a hill 30m from the informal settlement, said after the municipal employees left, about 200 people came to the house demanding he go with them to a park so he could be questioned.
“They were accusing me and my family of tipping off the municipality about new shacks being built.
“They said this was because every time new shacks were built, the municipality arrived to demolish them. They claimed I informed the council as I live nearby and see everything that is happening there,” he said.
Seeing how angry the mob was, Arumugam refused to accompany them and they vowed they would “be back”.
“I told them I had no business informing the municipality about what they were doing; that it was none of my business,” he said.
Arumugam, his wife, Shereen, 46, their daughter T’Keyah, 17, son, Jordache, 22, and his mother-in-law, Dolly Vaketsamy, 66, were terrified.
Jordache said he was lying awake when the shack dwellers returned.
“It was absolutely quiet and I had just looked out my window about 10 minutes earlier to see what was happening, considering the day we’d had, and there was nothing happening,” he recalled.
“Shortly afterwards, I heard an explosion and immediately called out for my parents and pressed the panic button,” he said.
There was a huge fire outside the front door but they could not see or hear anyone. But a bucket, smelling of petrol, had been left behind.
When the fire died down, they saw that the glass door and two cars had been damaged.
Then, on Sunday, while the Arumugams were loading their furniture on to a truck to move out, they were pelted with stones.
Arumugam said they were now moving out permanently.
“I don’t want to move. I bought this house exactly eight years ago for R420 000 and have spent about R300 000 doing up the inside, but all that matters now is my family’s safety. We can’t continue living here.”
The family has gone to live with Arumugam’s mother in Asherville.
The still-angry shack dwellers set up a blockade on the road, setting fire to rubbish in protest at the destruction of their shacks.
Security officers, sent by the municipality, dispersed them.
Municipality spokesman Thabo Mofokeng said it would be unfortunate if the Arumugams were attacked for exercising their rights because, if they did inform the municipality about illegal settlements, they were within their rights.
“We encourage people to report all illegal activities. It is every citizen’s right to do so. If people are being attacked for exercising their rights, it would be a really unfortunate situation and we trust the police will investigate and bring whoever is responsible to book,” he said.
The municipality was now taking a zero tolerance approach to land invasions and illegal electricity connections, he said.
“People cannot invade land and expect the municipality to do nothing. These land invasions set back development and planning,” he said.
Sydenham police said a case of damage to property was being investigated.
Bhekisani Ngcobo, ward councillor, was unavailable for comment.
Community leader, Mbuyisseni Armstrong Mthembu, said what angered them was that the municipality did not give any notice before demolishing shacks.
Mthembu said he tried reasoning with the supervisor of the team but the security officers started shooting at him with rubber bullets and he fell and broke his arm.
He said he was aware of the petrol bombing of the Arumugams’ home and had yet to speak to the shack dwellers to find out what had happened.
Daily News