Patricia de Lille has described Superintendent Mpumelelo Xakekile as a dedicated officer who was passionate about his job.
|||Cape Town - Cape Town mayor Patricia de Lille has described slain metro police officer Superintendent Mpumelelo Xakekile as a dedicated officer who was passionate about his job.
Xakekile, 50, was shot dead last week while issuing a fine to a minibus taxi in Khayelitsha.
Speaking at a memorial service for the officer on Wednesday, De Lille told a packed OR Tambo Hall in Khayelitsha that she had worked with Xakekile two weeks ago while officers were out on a drug raid in Hanover Park and Kewtown.
“I witnessed a man who was dedicated to and passionate about his job. That dedication and passion are evident in all the men and women who work day and night to make our city safe,” De Lille said.
“Superintendent Xakekile was so committed to rooting out lawlessness in the city that he could not let a violation of the law go unpunished simply because he was not on duty.”
De Lille said she had visited Xakekile’s family to convey her condolences to his wife, Nomzingisi, and daughter Nompululelo.
She said she tried to share the family’s grief, especially as Xakekile had died on his wife’s birthday and the two were planning to spend the evening together.
“He was a hero in life as he was in his tragic death,” she said. “We are doing everything we can to ensure that justice is achieved for his death. We are living in a sick society where people took away an innocent life for the fun of it. We will leave no stone unturned to bring the murderers to book.”
Sipho Xakekile told those at the memorial service that he had arrived at the scene as paramedics were trying to resuscitate his nephew after he had been shot. He said he knelt and prayed the minute his nephew died, when a blanket was placed over his body.
He said his nephew’s death was a blow to the family as he was a breadwinner and someone who loved his job, family and serving the community.
Meanwhile, police spokesman Lieutenant-Colonel Andrè Traut has said the memorial service for two slain Hout Bay police officers, Phindiwe Nikani and Mandisi Nduku, is to be held at 10am on Friday in the multi-purpose hall in Hangberg.
neo.maditla@inl.co.za
Cape Argus