Phiwokuhle Mothemela
"We just want the police to do their job!"
That was the cry from DA federal council chairperson Helen Zille during a march in Helenvale in Gqeberha on Thursday, the same area where a three-year-old boy was mercilessly shot and killed over a week prior.
Little Emilio Hutchinson died along with his grandmother, Ellen Hutchinson, 50, and a family friend, 44-year-old Claudeo Thomas.
The brutal triple murder is thought to be linked to a criminal matter that started in the city's High Court recently, against an alleged member of the New Kids Gang, Claudio Calvert.
The deceased are family members of a woman who was set to testify in court against Calvert.
The woman survived the attack as she did not spend the night at home out of fear for her safety.
Zille was outraged at the killings.
"When a three-year-old child is shot and killed in his own home then you know that the government is fundamentally failing to keep people safe," she said.
"The first duty of the state is to keep people safe and in a community like this where a young child, in the sanctuary of their home, can be killed through a home invasion, then we know we've reached a crisis point.
"This is just one of many, many similar incidents."
Zille said South Africa's murder rate had risen to "about 37% across three years", a situation she deemed "very serious indeed".
"The police presence is minimal and the conviction rate is almost non-existent," she added.
"So we have a failure, the most fundamental failure of the state, to protect people where they are the most vulnerable."
