Resort altercation no water under bridge

POLICE are investigating a case of assault with intent to cause grievous bodily harm after a resort owner allegedly assaulted a customer last week.

The customer, Mziwoxolo Bovana of Komani, claims Palm Springs Re- sort manager Jason Marsden assaulted him last week when he asked for a refund.

This after Bovana’s three-year-old daughter fell ill from drinking tap water at the resort.

Bovana, his partner, 14-year-old niece and daughter had booked to stay at the establishment from last Wednesday until Monday.

They paid R5 000 for the five nights they planned to stay.

However, their stay was cut short after the three-year-old suffered from diarrhoea after drinking resort water.

It was only after Bovana also drank the water, that he suspected his daughter’s illness might have been caused by the water he claims was salty.

After realising his daughter was not getting better, Bovana said he demanded to see the manager on Thursday to seek answers as there had been “no warning whatsoever” not to drink water at the units.

“I told the manager he had a responsibility to tell us if the water is not safe to drink. But surprisingly, he told me that it was my responsibility to ask and not assume that the water is safe for consumption.

“He then told me that everyone knows that the water on the coastline is not safe to drink and said I should go and ask my government why that was the case,” Bovana said.

This infuriated Bovana and the men then allegedly shoved each other back and forth.

“He punched me and my eyeglasses fell. When I tried to pick it up, he punched me again,” Bovana said.

“He humiliated me in front of my family.”

Police spokeswoman Warrant Officer Hazel Mqala confirmed they were investigating a case of assault with intent to cause grievous bodily harm but could not say who the suspect was.

Marsden also told the Dispatch that he had opened a case of assault and intimidation against Bovana but could not provide a case number.

He conceded there was an “altercation” between him and Bovana.

“He was rude and aggressive to my staff before I even got there. The SAPS will do its job, so I will leave the criminal side to them. However, he struck me first,” Marsden said.

Commenting on the quality of the water, Marsden said they had the resource tested.

“Yes, there is a bit of salt to it but not enough to make anyone sick. For all I know, the child could have been sick before they got here.

“I told him that ‘if not certain about the water, ask’. We sell water at the shop for a reason.” — ndamasem@dispatch.