DURBAN - THE families of the three women who were shot dead while they were going to attend an ANC meeting, said the party had a lot to answer for.
Ncami Shange, 34, Beatrice Dlamini, 75, and Philisiwe Jili, 37, who were described as staunch ANC supporters, were shot outside Buhlebethu Primary School in Inanda.
The women had gone to the school to attend the party’s ward nomination meeting.
Five other people were injured and taken to hospital.
At the scene yesterday, bloodstains were still visible on the ground outside the school gate.
Simnikiwe Makhanda, Jili’s boyfriend who lived with her, said her death had made him lose interest in voting, saying the ANC doesn’t care about the lives of the voters.
On the day of the incident, Makhanda said Jili had asked him to accompany her to cast her vote for the ward councillor, but he refused.
“If this is how politics works, we can’t and won’t vote. The gang and the ANC, the lives of these women are in their hands. I won’t hide that today I don’t have a partner because of the ANC,” said Makhanda.
After being told that Jili had been shot, Makhanda said he rushed to the scene and found Jili lying in a pool of blood, with people taking videos.
“I’m very heartbroken about what happened, and the worst part is that the videos of her lying in a pool of blood are everywhere. Every time I touch my phone, I see the videos and that just breaks me,” he said.
Shange’s relative, Zandile Shabangu, said the incident had left her questioning how the ANC treats its loyal supporters and voters.
“She was a member of the ANC; she loved the party with all her heart. We all love to vote, however it’s going to be hard now to even queue at the voting station since we are being killed in such a manner,” Shabangu said, adding that the party has a responsibility to look after its members.
According to Shabangu, Shange leaves behind her three children, who also lost their father a few years ago.
“She died with a lot of pain in her heart after her 18-year-old son was assaulted in Phoenix during the unrest in July.
“Her son is paralysed now and was dependent on Ncami. This is just too much,” said Shabangu.
The Justice, Crime Prevention and Security (JCPS) cluster identified KwaZulu-Natal as one of the provinces where security should be beefed up as the country prepares for the elections.
The cluster, led by Police Minister Bheki Cele, together with his deputy, Cassel Mathale, and deputy State Security Minister Zizi Kodwa, visited the mourning families yesterday.
Speaking outside the school, Cele said it was clear that people who were involved in the shooting wanted to intimidate the participants rather than target an individual.
He said they had the responsibility to determine the reason behind the shooting, and whether the suspects were acting on behalf of someone’s instruction.
“As the cluster, we need to stop this, and we are devising plans on how we will operate during the elections,” he said.
Cele called on the public and politicians to continue exercising their democratic rights, saying the police would be working hard to prevent further loss of lives.
He said to strengthen safety and security during the elections, the army may be deployed to identified hotspot provinces if need be.
“We will have to find a budget for that. It is election time and we cannot compromise on that,” said Cele.
Kodwa described the shooting as an act of intimidation, an attack on the Constitution and democratic order.
“We would like to make an appeal to people not to be intimidated by these incidents. The JCPS cluster is working on a plan to ensure that we protect the elections and the system,” said Kodwa.
THE MERCURY