Cape Town - Three siblings from Khayelitsha siblings have become the latest shooting victims of a violent crime trend plaguing the area.
Alfred, 52, Jacoba, 54, and Samuel Titus, 58, died after two armed men in dark clothes stormed the family home in Lindelwa Street in Ekuphumleni at around 8.10pm on Saturday and fired several shots.
This, the Khayelitsha Development Forum (KDF) chairperson Ndithini Thyido said, brought the number of people that have been killed in a mass shooting to 60 between May last year and May this year.
Police spokesperson Novela Potelwa said detectives were pursuing several leads but no arrests have been made.
Neighbour and family friend David Moyakhe said the family were distraught at the incident, which had left them with more questions. He said only one family member, a 15-year-old, managed to escape the shooting.
“The rest of the family were spared because they were still on their way from Kuils River after spending a weekend there. It puzzles us how this could have happened to these people, who had no grudges with anyone.
“They were nothing but peaceful people. I regarded them as my family as I mostly spend my day here – even the night of the incident, I was here and left just a few minutes before this happened,” he said.
Thyido said the KDF was at its wits’ end over the ongoing mass shootings in the area. “We need a properly co-ordinated response to the problems facing Khayelitsha, which we are not receiving. We feel that the people are being squeezed politically by all three spheres of government,” he said.
Thyido said it was almost 10 years since the Khayelitsha Commission of Inquiry had instructed the police to build a police station in Makhaza.
Instead, they “pushed it to the back” of their priorities.
“The people of Khayelitsha are forced to find a way to respond to the situation as they do not have a choice.
“We are not going anywhere and may just have to stand up and make this area safe ourselves to live in, it with or without the assistance of the government,” Thyido said.
Meanwhile, in Manenberg, six people believed to be commuters waiting for transport in Duinefontein Road were shot and wounded outside the Nyanga Junction mall yesterday morning.
Police spokesperson FC van Wyk said a case of attempted murder has been opened for investigation. He said the unknown suspect fled the scene on foot.
Community Safety and Police Oversight MEC Reagen Allen, who said he was angry at the incidents, assured residents he would continue to advocate for additional policing resources from the national government.
“I want these perpetrators found and arrested speedily. This terror has no place in our society and must be brought to an end.
“Khayelitsha has been plagued by severe shooting incidents and this cannot be allowed to continue unabated. The flare ups of gang related shootings in Manenberg are of deep concern and must also immediately stop,” Allen said.
“I call on SAPS to leave no stone unturned and to urgently track these heartless criminals down. Every bit of crime intelligence and investigation ability should be employed to find and arrest these criminals.
“My plea to the community is to assist SAPS and law enforcement by providing any leads they might have so that these perpetrators can be arrested. We must ensure they face the full might of the law,” he said.
“The days of gangsters running around like they own the place and terrorising our residents are over.”