eMbalenhle boy dies at initiation school in Standerton
The police are also investigating a kidnapping docket after another 17-year-old claimed that he was abducted and taken to an initiation school in Standerton where he was kept against his will.
Ayanda Maduba (17) died after he went to an initiation school in Standerton without notifying his parents.
According to his father, Wiseman Madonci, Ayanda attended winter classes at his school in eMbalenhle on June 8 but returned home with the news that no teachers were at school.
The teen then told his father he wanted to visit his friends.
“He is usually back home before the sun sets but never returned. I thought he might be sleeping over at a friend’s home.
“I thought he would be home the next day, but he did not return. Instead, two men arrived at my home, claiming a chief sent them to inform me my son is at his initiation school in the Standerton area.”
Madonci asked who permitted Ayanda to be initiated, but the men could not answer him and left.
“I later received a phone call from a man who introduced himself as ‘chief’. He said my son was with him at the initiation school and declared that I would only see Ayanda again in July,” said Madonci.
The so-called chief phoned Madonci the next day to tell him that Ayanda was complaining about pain in his foot. He later phoned again with news that Ayanda was healed.
Madonci, on July 1, again received a phone call to inform him his son was complaining about stomach ache. The person told Madonci that an ambulance had been summoned and was taking Ayanda to the clinic.
“After a few hours, they called me again. They told me they struggled to open a file for Ayanda at the Standerton Hospital because the nurses insisted the teenager’s parents had to open the file.
“I rushed to the Standerton Hospital where a nurse asked me if I knew that Ayanda was at an initiation school. I replied that I was only informed about that after some days.
“The nurse told me my son was already dead when he was brought to the hospital,” recalled a distraught Madonci.
Captain Magontseni Nkosi, the Mpumalanga police spokesperson, said an inquest was opened at the Standerton Police Station.
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No arrests have been made yet, pending the investigation. Nkosi said according to the information at the police’s disposal, Ayanda died in Standerton Hospital.
Every year, in winter, eMbalenhle parents flock to the eMbalenhle Police Station seeking assistance from the police to look for boys who ran off to the winter initiation schools without their permission.
Most of these initiation schools operate in Standerton in areas such as Cedarmont, Holmdene and surrounding areas.
Constable Busi Mthethwa, the eMbalenhle police spokesperson, said in a similar case, the police were investigating a kidnapping docket after another 17-year-old claimed that he was abducted and taken to an initiation school where he was allegedly kept against his will.
The teen said he was with a friend at a tuck shop in Ext 18, eMbalenhle when he was approached by men in a bakkie. They allegedly forced the boy into the vehicle and took him to Holmdene farm near Standerton.
Mthethwa said the victim’s parents rescued him and immediately took him to Standerton Hospital for medical treatment. Mthethwa said suspects are known to the victim and no arrests have been made yet as the investigation continues.
Earlier this month, concerned community members from eMbalenhle stopped three illegal initiation schools in Ext 22, eMbalenhle.
Last July, Thabang Ditsego (27) was one of the four initiates whose bodies were found next to burning tyres on Goedehoop Farm near Leandra.
The Mpumalanga police said at the time their task team investigated and finalised Ditsego’s case. The docket was taken to the Directorate of Public Prosecution to decide if someone had to be prosecuted.
