Student’s friends will miss his laughter most of all

WHAT Mlungisi Madonsela’s friends will miss most about him is his laughter. The third-year public administration student was shot three times and died following an altercation with security guards at the Durban University of Technology (DUT) on Tuesday.

Sphesihle Mbandlwa, 23, a close friend of Madonsela’s, said he was devastated that he would never see his friend laugh again.

“He was the type of person who could brighten up your day and make you laugh when you were having a bad day. He was always laughing and making jokes. Everyone enjoyed being around him,” he said.

Mbandlwa, a final-year financial accounting student, met Madonsela last year when they shared a room at the Medina Heights residence on Brickfield Road. They became best friends and did everything together.

“We used to call each other ‘roomza’ or ‘ree’. I cannot remember the last time I called him by his first name,” he said.

Mbandlwa described Madonsela as a focused student who took his studies seriously. Madonsela, an ardent member of the EFF Student Command (EFFSC) at DUT, was also dedicated to student politics.

Another close friend of Madonsela’s, Mthembeni Meyiwa, remembered him as a funny, easy-going person.

Meyiwa yesterday disrupted a live press conference of the ANC-affiliated SA Students’ Congress (Sasco), shouting: “You don’t know Mlu!”

Sasco provincial chairperson, Mqondisi Duma, said they were trying to show solidarity with the EFFSC when Meyiwa accused them of piggybacking on his late friend’s death.

Meyiwa said he was with Madonsela in his final moments.

“We were sitting under the tree waiting for feedback from the leadership, who were meeting with the university management,” he said.

“When the leadership came back, they told us the meeting was unproductive and we started singing, before the security guards came and tried to disperse us,” he said.

Meyiwa said the EFFSC stood their ground and a stand-off ensued, which resulted in students throwing rocks at the security guards.

A video on social media shows students outside the gates of Open House building, throwing rocks at guards before three loud bangs are heard.

“I saw (a guard) taking out a gun and shooting. Everyone started running and moments later, I saw Mlu hobbling and holding his side,” said Meyiwa.

They waved down a bakkie and loaded the bleeding Madonsela into the back.

“I was holding down his wound all the way to the hospital, trying to make sure he did not bleed out. The last time I saw him, he was being carried off on a stretcher,” said Meyiwa.

Madonsela was later pronounced dead at the hospital.

Investigations into his death are still under way.