“I survived and I believe it was God’s will that I was not at home during the shootings on Saturday night,” he said.
Zavale’s partner, Sarafina Letseka (36) and her daughter Palesa (22) were among the eight people who were shot and killed in Zavale’s home on Saturday night when an unknown number of gunmen fired shots in several places in the informal settlement.
Palesa’s two-year old daughter and Zavale are the only people who were not killed in the home. Zavale found the toddler in the bedroom with her mother and she was taken to hospital as she was injured in her leg.
Zavale explains that he went to Daveyton Mall earlier that day to buy stationery to send to his children in Mozambique and had asked someone to pick them up later that day to deliver them to his home in Mozambique.
“When the man who had agreed to help me transport the package home came around to pick them up at around 7pm, he told me he would charge me R70 but I had a R200 note and went to go and ask for change from my brother who lives nearby,” recalled Zavale.
He went to his brother’s house leaving Sarafina, Palesa and six poeple in the house watching television. He stayed at his brother’s house longer than expected as he walked in when his brother was watching a soccer match.
“I remember Supersport United were playing against University of Pretoria so I got the change and decided to stay and watch the match with my brother,” he said.
When he made his way back, he was welcomed by the shocking news of the shooting in his street.
“As I was walking towards my house, a neighbour warned me to be careful as they’d heard several gunshots in the area and were not sure what had happened. He asked me to wait a bit before making my way home,” said Zavale.
They spotted a passer-by who came from the direction of Zavale’s home and asked if he had seen anything suspicious.
“He seemed quite drunk and told me that he saw someone sleeping in front of my house, he even mentioned that this person was snoring,” he added.
When he made his way into the house he found bodies strewn everywhere.
“I walked in and all I saw were bodies lying everywhere – I tried shaking one person and when I got no response I knew they were all dead. I just took the little one and held her and she immediately fell asleep. I have been checking on her everyday and she is well on her way of recovery,” he said.
He said he noticed that the only thing that was taken was his bag with all his documents, including his passport.
There is speculation that the murders are somehow linked to the ongoing problem of illegal miners in the Benoni area but there has not been confirmation of this being the motive behind the deaths.
The Executive Mayor of Ekurhuleni, Mondli Gungubele visited families of the victims of Saturday night’s massacre in Chief Albert Luthuli informal settlement in Benoni.
During his brief visit to the area, he expressed shock at the shooting incident.
“This is a shocking incident. I still cannot come to terms with what happened here. These are things that you normally see in movies,” he said.
“I just cannot believe for the life of me that a group of people can just randomly open fire at other people regardless what the gripe might be,”
Gungubele immediately instructed officials to tend to the needs of the deceased’s families as they prepare to bury their loved ones.
“I know that whatever we are able to assist with as council will not bring back the deceased, but it will help bring some closure and dignity to their families,” he added.
Meanwhile the mayor has called on the public in general to assist the authorities in apprehending the murderers.
“Someone out there knows something. Let us work with the police to make our communities safer,” he said.
