The distraught mother of 18-year-old Misomihle Nkwalase told mourners at his funeral at the weekend that he had been a gentleman, a dreamer and a hard worker.
Zoleka, who referred to her son as “Miso”, gave a detailed account of their relationship and how she had been sickly in the days leading to his death.
Misomihle’s funeral was held at a packed Presbyterian Church of Africa Masiphumelele circuit in Zwide on Saturday.
The youngster was killed after he was allegedly deliberately run over by a car driven by Nelson Mandela Bay businessman Theo Gora.
The teenager died in hospital days later as a result of his injuries.
Gora, the suspended head of operations at Kasi Delivery, allegedly chased after and bumped into Misomihle with his vehicle on the night of October 11 in Veeplaas, claiming later that the youngster had been part of a group of people who had robbed him.
He was granted bail of R5,000 on Thursday last week in the New Brighton magistrate’s court, and the matter was postponed to January 26 for further investigation.
Outside the court that day, community members had gathered to show strong opposition to bail being granted.
A petition against bail containing more than 10,000 signatures was also handed to the court.
Zoleka said her son would put a lot of effort into everything he did.
He was known for being athletic and was a runner and soccer player.
Misomihle played for the Golden Stars club and ran for the “chillie” team.
She said he was not a fighter — that was not how she had raised him.
He was a grade 12 pupil at Ndzondelelo High School. He began his schooling at Thembelani Pre-Primary, later attending eMfundweni Primary School.
“I’d tell him not to fight. He would say he gets beaten up by others and needs to fight back. I taught him not to fight,” Zoleka said.
She said Misomihle was very neat and had big dreams for his future.
In the days leading to his death, she dreamt of him wearing clothing for initiates and greeting elders, which could be interpreted as the young man meeting his ancestors.
She said before his death she had a terrible headache and felt weak.
On one of those days, Misomihle had tried to cheer her up.
Zoleka said he was a straightforward person — and would tell her whenever he was leaving the house.
Also speaking at the funeral, Nelson Mandela Bay infrastructure and engineering political head Buyelwa Mafaya said crime in the metro was rife — and that residents were even scared to report wrongdoing to the security cluster because of mistrust.
Mafaya said Misomihle’s killing violated the concept of ubuntu and that many people had lost their sense of humanity.
Parents, she said, were protecting their children even though they had committed bad acts.
“We have ubuntu. We were raised like that. This is not ubuntu. This is something that should not have happened,” she said.
The Herald
