By Anita Dangazele
- Sisonke Mbolekwa was confirmed as a registered student despite earlier university claims denying it.
- The young man was allegedly shot by a residence manager during a protest over poor accommodation.
Higher Education Minister Nobuhle Nkabane has confirmed that the student shot dead at Walter Sisulu University (WSU) was indeed registered at the institution.
Sisonke Mbolekwa, a third-year Bachelor of Education student, was allegedly shot by a residence manager while protesting for better accommodation at the Mthatha campus.
On Tuesday, the university’s special programs director Ndiyakholwa Ngqulu telling Newzroom Afrika that Mbolekwa was not a registered student.
“In our database, the name we have received and the details of the alleged person who has died is not a student,” he said.
This caused outrage, with students taking to social media to challenge the claim.
Mbolekwa’s name trended online as classmates and friends posted proof that he was a student at the university.
Minister Nkabane visited the campus on Wednesday and said her department investigated the matter and found that the university’s statement was wrong.
“The unfortunate part of it is that as the department, we issued the statement without doing the due diligence or quality check to check whether the student or not,” Nkabane said.
The minister is expected to visit the family to convey her condolences.
On Wednesday, the family identified Mbolekwa’s body. They also visited the spot where he was killed.
EFF central command team member Ncedo Kolanisi, speaking for the family, said: “The family is still in shock. It’s [Mbolekwa’s death] still like a movie, it’s like a dream that someone has to wake them up from.
“This family will never rest, the spirit of Sisonke will never rest until he gets justice.”
Police spokesperson Nobuntu Gantana said no arrests have been made and the case is still under investigation.
“So it would mean that at this stage no arrests have been made and no one has been charged. We are still trying to investigate to ascertain what actually transpired and what led to the shooting,” Gantana said.
Pictured above: Higher Education Minister Nobuhle Nkabane during a visit to Mthatha on Wednesday afternoon.
Image source: DHET
