King’s sister survives gun attack on car
A SISTER of AbaThembu King Buyelekhaya Dalindyebo survived what she says was an attempted hit after a gunman fired three shots into her vehicle as she arrived at her Mhtatha home.
Businesswoman Phathiswa Sidiki, 35, popularly known by her clan name, MaDlomo, was unhurt but traumatised by the incident.
Sidiki said she had just pulled into her driveway at her Viedgesville village home at about 9pm on Friday when the shooting occurred.
“I saw a moving figure and thought that it was Madiba, my cattle herder, who normally opens the gate for me,” she said.
“As I was about to wind down the window to greet him, I heard gunshots, bang, bang, bang.
“I screamed and made what [I thought] would be the last prayer for my children. “But after the shooting, the gunman fled. “I do not know how I survive the shooting – it was miraculous and God’s mercy.
“The guy was standing next to my window, less than a metre away when he fired,” Sidiki said.
Police spokesman Lieutenant-Colonel Mzukisi Fatyela confirmed the shooting.
“An attempted murder case has been opened and we call upon members of the public to assist us in tracking down this gunman,” he said yesterday.
Sidiki said she had asked herself how the three shots fired through the driver’s door had gone through the passenger door without hitting her. “Look, I am big, I fill the whole car,” she said. “I was in the driver’s seat, but all the shots missed me. God works in ways that nobody can understand.
“Although I don’t know who is behind this, it is clear that this was hit – but I do not know why. “He did not even try to steal anything.” A still-traumatised Sidiki said her young children could not stop crying after the shooting.
“Although I survived, I am now living in fear for myself and my family,” she said.
“I do not know when a hit might come again.”