Slain policeman’s son still asks where he is
Constable Akho Ndzingo’s 4-year-old son is still asking where his father is weeks after he was fatally shot in the line of duty in Khayelitsha.
So says Kholekile Ndzingo, the father of the dead Premier Soccer League referee turned policeman.
His 29-year-old son had only been in the police for six months when he was shot while patrolling Site C on the night of Wednesday June 12.
Last Thursday, at a memorial service at the OR Tambo Hall, where senior provincial police officers were among those who gathered to pay their last respects, Mr Ndzingo recalled the 11pm knock at his door. Three police officers had come to tell him what had happened.
“They were doing a patrol when they saw a group of young men standing at a corner. They stopped with the intention of telling them to move, but one quickly jumped a yard, and Akho went after him in a different direction, not knowing that this criminal had already seen him. He then shot him.
“They took him to Site B day hospital. He was hit on the left side close to the heart just slightly off the bulletproof vest.
“This is one of the saddest days of my existence. Sometimes it feels like my son is going to knock on the door. This has been one of the extremely difficult parts of my life of planning my son's funeral.”
Mr Ndzingo said his son had made his PSL refereeing debut four years ago but had decided to join the police to earn a more stable income.
He said his son had loved football and he had loved serving his community of Site C and Khayelitsha.
He described his son as a loving and caring person with big dreams who loved his family and his son.
Major General Preston Voskuil said Constable Ndzingo had taken on various leadership roles during his training at the Oudtshoorn police academy.
He said he was known in Khayelitsha for always going beyond the call of duty; he had started a soccer academy for young boys and had played in the SAPS soccer league.
That such a promising life should end in such a tragic way showed what our society had become, as criminals no longer feared attacking law-enforcement officers, he said.
He urged anyone with information about Constable Ndzingo’s killing to come forward, and he expressed his condolences to Constable Ndzingo’s family, saying he had died a patriotic hero, serving his country.
Khayelitsha Policing Forum chairperson Monde Bambelo said he had known Constable Ndzingo as they had patrolled the Site C area together on occasion, and his dedication and hard work showed there was still hope to rebuild trust between police officers and the community.
