’All I want to see is justice’ - grieving mom
Families of the victims of the accident in Protea Glen, that lead to the tragic deaths of 17-year-old friends Sakhile Mazibuko and Khaya Nkolongwane want justice for their children are still battling to find answers from the police.
The Mazibukos and Nkolongwanes feel aggrieved that seven months after an off-duty Johannesburg Metropolitan Police Department (JMPD) officer allegedly knocked them down while speeding on the streets, the police have made no arrests and yet the suspect is free and is often seen driving around in the area.
The incident happened on June 19, 2021 and a case of two counts of culpable homicide was opened on June 20, 2021, CAS 268/2021 at the Protea Glen Police Station.
After allegations that the investigating officer in the case had asked random people to state under oath that the two boys were drunk, dragged his feet, the case was moved to the Independent Police Directorate (Ipid) for further investigations.
But when The Sunday Independent spoke to Ipid spokesperson Grace Langa, she said the delay in bringing the matter to justice lies with the National Prosecuting Authority (NPA) as Ipid was still waiting for the NPA to make a decision before any action can be taken.
But when the paper contacted the NPA’s spokesperson Phindi Louw Mjonondwane, she retorted: “We have no record of such a docket being brought to us, if they can tell which office and who signed for the docket, it will be easier to trace the information.”
Meanwhile, while officialdom squabble over who has the docket or who must act first, the families of the victims are feeling that the delay is denying them justice because they are the ones who have to live with the constant pain of losing their young sons in such a violent manner without anyone coming forward in a court of law to explain what really happened on that day.
Mazibuko’s mother Bongiwe Zulu said just talking and reliving the horror of losing her son is like picking at a scab that is refusing to heal.
“Sisi, this is a very difficult topic to talk about because I have lost a son during this entire ordeal but nobody seems to care,” she said with a heavy voice.
“And it’s not like I want to forget about my son, I can never forget about him, but knowing that we are not getting any help from the police is really killing me inside.
“All I want to see is justice,” said the emotional mother.
Zulu, who lives in Orange Farm, raised Mazibuko until the age of 10 and then he moved to live with his father in Protea Glen where the accident happened.
“When you are a parent, you look forward to seeing your child grow and become something. Nobody ever dreams of burying their children,” she said.
Khaya’s mom, Thembi Nkolongwane, said living has become a nightmare for her.
“How do two children just die, just like that with no repercussions? Are we so meaningless to the lawmakers that our plight is not taken seriously?”, she said, adding that although they seem to have run out of options, they cannot give up.
“All we want is for an arrest to be made and for the case to be heard in court. How we are being treated is painful. Living life is so difficult as it is, now this.”
The Sunday Independent brought the plight of the two families to the attention of anti-crime activist Yusuf Abramjee who has escalated the matter to the mayoral committee member responsible for community safety David Tembe.
Several messages sent to Tembe were still not responded to at the time of going to print.
Said Abramjee: “It is an unfortunate reality that the wheels of justice turn very slow in South Africa and such cases take a very long time to be resolved because they are waiting for this report and that report. But there really needs to be accountability.
“There needs to be some closure for these families and I am calling on authorities to take urgent and decisive action. As a country, we need to come up with one or two other measures to make sure that we speed up these processes, and that is a real problem,” he added.
Sunday Independent