GRIEVING FAMILY’S BURIAL TRAUMA
Diggers hit by robbery leave grave site incomplete
Imagine arriving at a cemetery with family and friends for the burial of a parent, only to find that the grave has not been dug and the site has been abandoned after the grave diggers were attacked by criminals.
A grieving Kwazakhele family were devastated when they had to postpone the burial of their mother at the Papenkuil Cemetery in Gelvandale after the men who were supposed to dig the grave were robbed of their cellphones and clothes by thugs, who left them with only their underwear.
The funeral parlour in charge of the arrangements says a third grave digger, from another undertaker, who was then assigned to do the job was also attacked and robbed of his vehicle.
Like many of these crimes, few are reported.
The incident has highlighted the lack of security at certain Nelson Mandela Bay cemeteries that funeral parlours – which have reported similar incidents – say they constantly have to battle with.
The family of the late Nokuzola Jacobs, 58, were forced to turn around with her coffin on Sunday and then feed a house full of mourners, who had attended the funeral, so that the food that had been prepared would not spoil.
Some people had travelled from as far as Cape Town for the funeral.
The burial then had to take place a day later, on Monday.
Nokuzola’s daughter, Asanda, said they had been told by Odwa Duru, of Odwa Duru Funerals, that the diggers who were meant to prepare her mother’s grave had been robbed and had consequently abandoned the job.
Jacobs said Duru had called her an hour before they were meant to arrive at the grave site, but had made no mention of the incident.
“He called asking for directions to the grave site.
“When we arrived at the cemetery and saw what was happening, we called him and he made up all kinds of excuses, like that he was out of town, and eventually he stopped answering our calls,” Jacobs said.
Nokuzola’s niece, Noluthando Seti, said: “This has added more pain to an already difficult situation because we’d already told ourselves we’re laying our aunt to rest – and then this happened.
“It’s extremely traumatising.”
But a furious Duru has laid the blame squarely on the municipality for not providing effective security.
Duru said the men who had been hired to dig the grave were attacked and robbed of their cellphones, shoes and clothes, and had run away.
“Eventually, I got another digger who works for another undertaker to come and assist, but he was also robbed and hijacked of his vehicle.
“He ran towards the BP garage in Stanford [Road], where he was assisted by other motorists,” Duru said.
He said he and other undertakers had raised safety issues several times with the municipality, but nothing had been done to improve security.
“Firstly, when the guys came to dig, there was no caretaker here to assist them and act as a bodyguard.
“How is it that there was no-one to look after people coming into the cemetery?
“Now I look like I don’t care and I don’t know how to do my job when the issue of safety is the municipality’s competency,” Duru said.
“People who know me and attended the funeral called to ask me what had happened because they know the kind of work I do.
“The municipality has to answer for this because this could have a lasting effect on my business.”
There was no-one at the gate of the Papenkuil Cemetery on Monday to check on people walking in.
There is no fencing around parts of the cemetery.
People walk in at will and use the cemetery as a thoroughfare to cross over from Gelvandale to Young Park.
Other funeral parlours have experienced similar problems, with their staff also robbed of cellphones, forcing them to eventually hire firearms for the protection of their diggers.
Johannes Fortuin, from Fortuin Funeral Home, said there was a general crime problem at cemeteries and the fact that Papenkuil was not enclosed made it an easy target.
“Hence when we have a funeral in Papenkuil, we go there armed and leave a driver and vehicle standing there [while the diggers are busy].
“This is an expensive exercise, which people don’t understand,” he said.
“The place is open and the municipality needs to take care of its property and enclose it because we are paying for that.
“The families don’t understand these things.”
He said that as far as the families were concerned, they had paid the funeral parlour thousands of rands and expected a service.
“But what must you do when you left your guy there and he gets robbed?” Fortuin asked.
Luyolo Nqakula, from Uitenhage Funerals, agreed that security at cemeteries needed to be improved significantly.
He said there were no armed security guards at the
cemeteries, which needed to change because people were being robbed daily.
“I have a colleague who was hijacked of his hearse in KwaNobuhle last year because of the [casket] lowering device, which is expensive.
“They [criminals] also target quiet graveyards such as Bucwa in KwaNobuhle and large ones such as Motherwell on weekdays,” Nqakula said.
His diggers had been robbed in the Motherwell Cemetery but it had not been reported to the police.
Masebe Hans, from Vantyi and Vantyi Funeral Parlour, said robberies occurred regularly.
“We dig early so that we are long gone by the afternoon – but that still doesn’t change anything.
“It doesn’t matter if you’re a digger, a visitor or even the undertaker, everyone gets robbed,” Hans said.
Safety and security executive director Keith Meyer said the Papenkuil matter had not been reported to his office.
“The victim[s] was supposed to report the matter to the SAPS to register a criminal case of robbery.
“The security sub-directorate does not deploy security guards at cemeteries, however, only random visits are conducted,” Meyer said.
Safety and security political head Litho Suka said if funeral undertakers had issues with security at cemeteries he would have expected them to lodge a complaint with the municipality and ask for a meeting.
“Also, funeral home owners need to come together and hire security at these cemeteries because [these are] private businesses, and they buy plots from the municipality,” Suka said.
Public health political head Yolisa Pali declined to comment, saying she was not aware of the security issues.