Nkabinde begins
Wonder Hlongwana
Richmond residents have high expectations of the trial of alleged warlord Sifiso Nkabinde. They say they want to know who gave him guns, ammunition and money. They also believe the 18 counts of murder he is facing are just a drop in the ocean.
Half of the charges Nkabinde faces in the Pietermaritzburg Regional Court date back to before he was expelled from the African National Congress earlier this year. Of the 18 murder charges, eight were committed while Nkabinde was in the ANC and 10 after he joined the National Consultative Forum (NCF).
Democratic Party MPL Roger Burrows said the ANC had defended Nkabindes activities and elected him to senior positions but were now turning their back on him.
It took the ANC more than a year to expel him after allegations that he was a police spy first surfaced in KwaZulu-Natal
Burrows also accused the ANC of withholding information they had gathered against Nkabinde during their investigation into his activities as a police spy.
It is surprising that Nkabinde has been charged for only ANC murders. Nothing is mentioned about the Inkatha Freedom Party when its known that he also fought in defence of the ANC, said Sifiso Bhengu, NCF spokesman in KwaZulu-Natal. Bhengu added that until Nkabinde is proven guilty he will not be suspended from the NCF.
KwaZulu-Natal violence monitor Mary de Haas said because Nkabinde is only charged with murders of ANC members, this will give people ammunition to claim that it [the ANC] only acts for itself. She said the police investigation should have gone back to 1990 and that in this matter the ANC appeared to be selective in the way it administers justice.
Yet national South African Police Services representative Reg Crewe said police could only charge Nkabinde for crimes for which they have gathered evidence . If people come forward with more information we will investigate further.
KwaZulu-Natal ANC representative Dumisani Makhaye denied that Nkabinde had been a bona fide member of the organisation. He was an agent provocateur of the racist regime.
He said the ANC believed the real masterminds of political violence were still at large. He predicted they might avenge Nkabindes arrest by fomenting more unrest in an attempt to prove others were involved in the violence.
In Richmond a climate of relief has descended over the rural community. Many were relieved at Nkabindes arrest. But they are concerned because his alleged accomplices are still free. Prime suspects Bob Ndlovu and Sorren Ngilo, who have been sought for months, are among the 10 most wanted men in South Africa.
Most Richmond residents first heard of the early-morning arrest when police helicopters swooped over the town, broadcasting the news.
They were telling us Nkabinde had been arrested and all those who have knowledge of illegal firearms should approach the police with information, said Thandozile Mchunu, sister of slain ANC councillor Bhekumuzi Mchunu. He was murdered in July with five ANC members. Nkabinde has been charged with orchestrating those killings.
Richmond residents hope his arrest will lead to the reopening of schools closed about three months ago and development projects such as extension and tarring of roads will resume. After the news of Nkabindes arrest, women ululated with joy while others went into the mountains to thank God for answering their prayers.
How long will they keep him there? If I were the judge, I could give him a life sentence, said Florence Nyide, sister of murder victim Elphas Nyide.
Nkabindes wife, Nonhlanhla, refused to speak saying her heart was too broken following her husbands arrest.
Another resident, Sbonelo Mkize, said he was happy Nkabinde was arrested, but was convinced he should be charged with more than 18 murders including some outside the Richmond area.
At his bail application this week, Nkabinde denied all the charges against him and said he had co-operated with the police in their investigations into the murders.