Police have deployed a task team to probe the death of the ANC’s Ulundi branch chairman, who was shot in front of his family.
|||Durban - Police have deployed a task team to probe the death of the ANC’s Ulundi branch chairman, who was shot in front of his family at the weekend.
The murder of Makhosonke Msibi, 48, who was shot in the kitchen of his home, has stunned his party, which believes it was politically motivated.
Police spokesman, Colonel Vincent Mdunge, said a task team had been appointed, adding that the gunman had not yet been arrested.
“The deceased tried to evade the attack but couldn’t get away from him. He collapsed in the bedroom trying to evade the gunman,” he said.
ANC councillor, Tutu Buthelezi, a close friend of Msibi’s, said the assassination had sparked concerns among locals.
“We are not safe anymore. I am with his family right now and they are all deeply traumatised by what happened here,” he said.
“It is clear that he was killed for his active political participation in Ulundi, because everybody knew him and what he stood for.
“He was open and truthful and everybody knew that he did not stand for corruption.
Buthelezi said Msibi’s 12-year-old son had opened the door when the unknown gunman asked for his father. When Msibi appeared, he was confronted by the man, who fired at him from the kitchen.
“It is so sad, what these kids and MaButhelezi (Msibi’s wife) witnessed is beyond gruesome. They are young and will have to live with the images of this brutal killing because they saw this unfold,” he said.
Msibi’s wife was too traumatised to speak to the media. His mother and extended family have arrived in Ulundi to prepare for his funeral.
The ANC’s provincial spokesman, Senzo Mkhize, said the party believed the killing was politically motivated.
“We were convinced the province had moved away from these barbaric acts of political killings where ANC members are killed with the intention of wiping them out,” he said.
“These political killings are an indication of political bankruptcy and immaturity of people who have been rejected by the people of our province,” Mkhize said.
“Considering that we are heading for the 2014 elections, the ANC is deeply disturbed by Msibi’s murder as it happened in an area where the ANC has in the past elections experienced intimidation from people who felt threatened by our presence in their backyards, and unable to contest in the battle of ideas.”
The party’s youth league described the murder as “barbaric”.
“To us, Msibi was not only a leader but also a father and for him to be gunned down in a senseless manner like this in his home where he was supposed to be safe is really disheartening,” said the league’s provincial convener, Nontembeko Boyce.
The league has appealed to the MEC for Transport, Community Safety and Liaison, Willies Mchunu, to intervene and deploy the “best team” of investigators to find the perpetrators speedily.
“We want it to be known that such cruel and barbaric incidents have no place in this province,” Boyce said.
On Monday Mchunu condemned Msibi’s murder saying the frequent attacks on elected public representatives was a setback to the country’s fledgling democracy.
sihle.mlambo@inl.co.za
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