Nearly a decade after the killing of Bafana Bafana star Senzo Meyiwa, his murder trial is set to begin and hopefully bring his family much-needed answers.
The trial against five men accused of killing the goalkeeper in Vosloorus on the East Rand eight years ago, will start in the high court in Pretoria on Monday.
Four of the men are expected to plead not guilty, according to AfriForum’s legal head, Advocate Gerrie Nel.
AfriForum took up the case in 2019 in an effort to assist it moving along and see to its end.
Speaking to Sowetan on Sunday, Nel said the trial was a significant step in getting the motive behind the killing and for the family to finally have closure.
“The family feels a sense of relief. It is a step closer to closure. The start of the trial is significant and confirmation that although the wheels of justice turn slowly they keep grinding.
“We hope that the trial will commence and present an opportunity to the state to lead evidence,” he said.
Nel said he was satisfied that the correct people were before the court but added it was critical to point out that the “mastermind” had not been added to the indictment.
“I reiterate that in our view this was not a robbery that went wrong but a contractual killing,” he said.
“The fact that the mastermind is not before court complicates any further prosecution.
The accused indicated that they will plead not guilty and will thus exclude any reference to a mastermind in their evidence.”
Nel said his role and that of AfriForum was to monitor the case and ensure the Meyiwa family understood the evidence and implication of witnesses for the case.
“If the trial starts the most important issue would be the possibility that the accused may provide an explanation of plea. If they do it will be significant,” he said.
The accused are Muzikawukhulelwa Sibiya, Bongani Sandiso Ntanzi, Mthobisi Prince Mncube, Mthokoziseni Maphisa and Sifikuhle Nkani Ntuli Sifiso.
They face charges of murder, attempted murder, armed robbery, possession of firearms without a license and possession of ammunition.
The National Prosecuting Authority (NPA) said Sibiya had been sentenced by the Vosloorus magistrate’s court to 12 years imprisonment in a separate matter.
The court declared him unfit to possess a firearm after he was convicted for the attempted murder of Ntombenhle Ndaba and Mfanelo Mbatha, who he attacked in a hail of bullets.
The two survived.
In the lead-up to Monday’s trial, Netflix released a five-part docu-series that premiered on April 7.
The docu-series features exclusive interviews with Meyiwa's family, sports broadcaster Robert Marawa, former Hawks head Shadrack Sibiya and Nel.
In an interview on Sunday, Meyiwa’s family said it would be attending the court proceedings in Pretoria and would be represented by his cousin, Nomalanga Meyiwa and sister Zama Meyiwa.
Nomalanga said she was hoping to get the truth about what really happened on the day Meyiwa was shot.
“Also, we want to know who really was the mastermind behind all this. We want to know what exactly Senzo did that led to his death.
“It’s has been very difficult because this matter has dragged on for a long time and we haven’t had closure for the past eight years. We have hope that now is the time we will know what really happened and find closure. We are expecting to get closure, it’s been a long time, we want justice to be served,” she said.
Probed about the witness line-up and the scale of the case the state had built over the last eight years, NPA spokesperson Lumka Mahanjana would only say: “The trial is set to start tomorrow at the Pretoria high court. The state is ready to proceed with the trial. Everything else will be ventilated in court during the trial. At this stage we don’t want to pre-empt anything.”
She said the trial was set to run until April 29.
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