Johannesburg - The three-year prison sentence of culpable homicide convicted Durban businessman, Sifiso Zulu, would serve as an important lesson to motorists, KwaZulu-Natal Transport MEC Willies Mchunu said on Sunday.
“We welcome Zulu's imprisonment. This is clear evidence that our courts are now taking seriously cases relating to transgressions of the road regulations,” Mchunu said in a statement.
“One can only hope that the finalisation of this long-dragging case will bring closure to families of the victims.”
Zulu, 42, the former head of the Durban Chamber of Commerce, was convicted in April 2010.
On Saturday, Zulu handed himself in at the Westville prison to start his three-year sentence.
This was after the Pietermaritzburg High Court's last week dismissed his appeal against the conviction and sentence for a 2008 road accident.
The court found that Zulu, driving a BMW X5, jumped a red robot and crashed into a bakkie, killing two members of the Souls Harbour Church and injuring eight others in March 2008.
He was sentenced to five years in jail, two of which were suspended, and fined R7 000 for various driving offences.
“We hope this case will be a lesson to all motorists to respect the rule of law,” said Mchunu. - Sapa