An icon in his life, a symbol of police failure in his death

This week, on the anniversary of the murder of former Orlando Pirates and Bafana Bafana goalkeeper Senzo Meyiwa, speculation again swirled regarding the circumstances of his death. Meyiwa was shot and killed this month in 2014 at the Ekurhuleni home of his girlfriend, singer Kelly Khumalo, in what was first reported as a house robbery. This happened in the presence of several people who were in the house at the time. The details of the murder was murky from the start, with the subsequent release without charge of the suspect initially arrested.

Since then, there have been several stories, none of which has been corroborated, about who shot Meyiwa and the likely motive. The latest claim, this week, was that the murder weapon had been found. Police have declined to confirm or deny the report.

The authorities, too, through their pronouncements, have added grist to the rumour mill. Both the previous and current police ministers have claimed to have prioritised the Meyiwa case, or suggested an imminent breakthrough — without delivering any results.

There is no doubt that the Meyiwa murder has remained in the public eye due to the fact he was a famous sportsperson and an idol to many South Africans. But would it still be a police priority, six years after it happened, had the victim been an ordinary citizen?

The case is symbolic for two reasons. One is that it shines the spotlight on our high crime and murder levels, which would be unacceptable in any society not at war.

Second, the failure to solve the Meyiwa case hardly gives hope to the many families who have lost loved ones to the criminals who pose an ever-present menace to our communities.

For if police cannot crack the high-profile murder of someone as famous as Meyiwa, what chance is there of solving the many murders of regular citizens — nearly 60 a day?

If citizens lose trust in the criminal justice system as a result of its failure to bring to book the perpetrators, they might find it more attractive to take the law into their own hands, to the detriment of law and order and of our democracy as a whole.

After six years, it behoves the authorities to deliver on their promises and bring the Meyiwa murderer, or murderers, to book.