- A memorial service was held at the Methodist Church of Southern Africa in Site C for the four people killed in a barber shop shooting on June.
- Khayelitsha Station Commander Brigadier Mononeleli Magobiyane apologised for the police’s failure to protect the victim.
- Community leader Joseph Langa highlighted issues with informants among community leaders but vowed to continue fighting for the community’s safety.
The Methodist Church of Southern Africa in Site C was packed to the rafters during the memorial service for the four people who were shot and killed at a local barber shop on Qwarha Street in Site C on Saturday, June 8. At the service, organised by the community, speakers described the incident as shocking and appealed for unity.
Khayelitsha Station Commander Brigadier Mononeleli Magobiyane conceded that officers failed the families of the deceased in protecting their loved ones.
“As a station commander, I’m saying sorry to all the deceased families. We failed you as officers. We should have protected them, but we didn’t do that. We failed them,” he said, adding that their priority job is to protect the community.
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He cited drugs and alcohol as contributing factors to the escalating crime in the area. “Two people were arrested on Tuesday, June 11, and are expected to appear at Khayelitsha Magistrates Court in Khayelitsha tomorrow (Friday, June 14). And we are expecting more arrests to happen,” he stated.
Community leader Joseph Langa urged the community to be united, mentioning the challenge of informants within their ranks. “We had a WhatsApp group as community leaders, but we discovered that there are some among ourselves who take the information in the group and send it to other people outside. We had one of our members who was attacked due to that,” he explained. However, he vowed they would continue fighting for the community.
