The greater Stellenbosch community is reeling after the murder of a former politician this week.
Stellenbosch police launched a manhunt for those responsible for the slaying of former Stellenbosch deputy mayor, Nyaniso Jindela, in Khayamandi.
Jindela’s death comes merely weeks after the death of DA councillor Xolile Kalipa in the same community on the evening of Sunday 14 May.
“This is getting out of hand. These types of things we used to see in Durban,” one community member wrote on social media of Jindela’s death.
Political related killings in KwaZulu-Natal have long been an issue with an Inter-Ministerial Committee (IMC) even being set up to investigate the killings. In September 2023, then police minister General Bheki Cele said 52 councillors had been gunned down between 2011 and 2023.
According to Captain Nathalie Martin, spokesperson for Stellenbosch police, officers were called to the scene in Vineyard Street, Khayamandi, at 20:00 Monday (9 June).
“When the officers arrived on the scene, they were pointed to the body of an unknown man, laying between a Toyota Avanza and a fence,” she explains.
“A backpack, keys and cellphone were laying next to the body. Paramedics arrived and declared the man deceased. It was discovered that he had been fatally shot.”
Martin said family members of the deceased were on the scene and identified the body as that of the former deputy mayor, Jindela.
The scene was similar to the one where Kalipa was gunned down.
At the time, Martin confirmed that police were called to a scene in Swart Close, Khayamandi, where Kalipa’s lifeless body was found lying between two vehicles. “The deceased was shot multiple times and was declared dead on the crime scene by paramedics,” she said in May.
On Wednesday (11 June), local police said no suspects had been arrested in connection with Kalipa’s death.
In the statement issued by Stellenbosch Municipality this week, it expressed “great shock and sadness” at the news of the fatal shooting of Jindela. “Mr Jindela was a former councillor who served the community with distinction, including in the role of deputy mayor,” the statement read.
“The incident is currently under investigation by the South African Police Service and the municipality will fully support [the police] by providing any information they may require. We extend our deepest condolences to Mr Jindela’s family and loved ones during this horrific time.”
Jindela served as a deputy mayor under former executive mayor Gesie van Deventer and was also speaker of the council at a time. He was once part of the ANC before he moved over to the DA.
In mid-2021, Jindela, his wife, Unathi, and three others were arrested for the murder of Cameron Mcako, another former deputy mayor of Stellenbosch. Mcako was gunned down outside his tavern, Happy Rest Tavern, on 1 November 2019. He died in hospital two days later.
Martin could not provide any further information on the most recent incident as the murder investigation is underway.
Community members remembered Jindela and the assistance he provided. “I am grateful to this man for his help with my school applications. He exhibited a fatherly love that extended beyond his own children, but also to me,” a community member said.
GOOD councillor Robin Hendrickse said Jindela’s death is a “painful reminder of the deepening crisis of violence gripping our communities”.
Along with Kalipa’s death Hendrickse also referred to a private security officer who was killed at the Khayamandi Sports Ground on Saturday 24 May. “These are not isolated events, they are part of a pattern of escalating violence that has left residents living in fear,” she urged.
• Anyone with information on the murder cases is asked to call Stellenbosch police on 021 809 5012/15.
