The leader of a traditional dance group (igoso), who was slated to perform at the upcoming Ngoma kaZwelonke event on 27 June at the Moses Mabhida – People’s Park in Durban, KwaZulu-Natal (KZN), has been killed in a shooting incident.
Xhegu “Sigxabhiya” Njoko, aged 45, from Mkholombi in Weenen, was fatally shot at his residence on Tuesday night.
<pSinaye Njoko, his eldest daughter, reported that intruders entered their home and shot her father shortly after he returned from town.
“He had just arrived home, we prepared food for him, and he went to sleep in his room. After a short while, we heard gunshots twice and heard him crying out, saying: ‘Oh Shembe, I am dying and leaving my children behind.’ We all went outside to check and saw a person running away, and then he went completely silent,” said the daughter.
A KZN-based newspaper reported that Xolani Mcineka, the founder of Ngoma kaZwelonke, expressed deep sorrow over the tragedy.
“We have suffered a devastating blow because what Sigxabhiya used to do at Mabhida left everyone in awe. I grieve for his troupe, and we hope the ancestors will draw close to the dancers he used to perform with to comfort them. We will continue to work with his group even though he is no longer with us,” he said.
