ANC man shot at KZN home

An ANC member and community development worker was shot dead in the Umzimkhulu area of KwaZulu-Natal on Saturday night, pushing the number of political killings in the province to well over 30 since 2016.

According to the South African Police Service (Saps) KwaZulu-Natal spokesperson Colonel Thembeka Mbhele, 56-year-old Nkosikhona Maxhakana was shot dead at his home.

“Maxhakana was at his home in Rietvlei location fixing a light bulb on the veranda when unknown males fired several shots at him. He sustained multiple gunshot wounds and died at the scene. A case of murder was opened at Ibisi police station. No arrests have been made at this stage,” she said.

Umzimkhulu is in the ANC’s Harry Gwala region, which is rife with political violence. Infighting, allegations of “gate-keeping” and selective membership approvals have been made in several regions in the province, including in Harry Gwala.

The most high-profile killing in the province so far has been that of former ANC Youth League secretary-general Sindiso Magaqa, who was shot in July last year. Magaqa was a councillor at uMzimkhulu municipality at the time and was allegedly exposing corruption at the institution.

Two colleagues who were with him were also shot but survived and were later provided with private security at the municipality’s expense. Magaqa died in hospital in September. While much fanfare was made about police killing one of those for his murder in an unrelated shootout, it’s doubted the man was actually a suspect.

There has been a spike in political killings in KwaZulu-Natal since 2011. In 2016, Premier Willies Mchunu established the Moerane Commission of Inquiry to probe the killings from 2011 onwards. It concluded its investigation in March, but its final report is still pending. – ANA