Cape Town - Meet the Bruce Lee of car guards.
A Congolese nunchuck-wielding karate “master” has become every car thief’s worst nightmare in the Cape Town CBD.
Every night the balaclava-clad guard, who goes by “Master Lolo” and insists he has no other name, shows up at Lefty’s restaurant in Harrington Street, where he watches over patrons’ cars.
And the 36-year-old is so good at his job that he’s become a celebrity, with grateful people posting videos of his mad karate skills on YouTube.
Lolo told the Daily Voice: “People need their cars protected and I have the ability to make the area safe.
“I am very good at it and will do it for as long as I am needed.”
Lolo said the area was very quiet and he has only ever had to move people along, not fight them off.
He doesn’t mean to brag, but said it’s probably because they had heard of his bad-ass reputation.
“People know not to make trouble here,” he told the Daily Voice.
Lolo claims to be a 2nd Dan black belt, trained by his master in the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) since he was 19 years old.
He said he was forced to leave his homeland in 2008 when the ruling party “started targeting karate masters, accusing them of being rebels”.
He said after both his master, and his master’s son were “killed by the government”, he decided to flee.
“We had to leave or we would be dead.”
Every afternoon at 5pm, Lolo dons his balaclava, dayglo vest and nunchucks.
A ninja has never looked as menacing as when Lolo performs his kata in the street.
“Our training makes us dangerous weapons, but karate is about discipline,” he said.
“You have the tools to kill, but you are disciplined and trained to think before reacting in any situation.”
Waitress Lara Ries, 20, said she feels safe when Lolo is on duty.
Ries said: “He is so cool and calm and the nicest guy you will ever meet. We never knew he was this talented until he showed us and he even tried to teach some of us how to work the nunchucks. He is amazing.”
To thank him, the waiters club together and Lolo gets a cut from their tips.
Daily Voice