From all over the province, more than two thousand grieving mourners converged at the Reiger Park Civic Centre, on Thursday evening.
By 6pm the community hall was already full and more than a thousand of mourners had to wait outside the hall.
Speakers expressed their intense sorrows and also expressed their support and sympathy for the Morris family.
Among the dozens of dignitaries who came to pay their respect to Taegrin described as a hero, are MEC for Social Development Faith Mazibuko, several local ward councillors, SAPS members including Brakpan cluster commander Brigadier Jacobus van der Westhuizen, Reiger Park station commander Col Sipho Mathebula and pastors such as Pastor Wayne Ballakistan among others.
“Chantal… it’s only God who will help you to come to terms with the memory of the sound of Taegrin saying to you… mom help me, because that sound is going to be there for a long time,” said Ekurhuleni Mayor Mondli Gungubele.
Quoting from the scripture the mayor said those who pardon are pardonable, when there is darkness God gives light.
“When Taegrin died on Saturday, humanity was given an opportunity to become human and assume a human responsibility. It is up to humanity to use that moment to become human together against criminals. Taegrin’s death has made a call for us to do so. Human freedom in unity across colour, across ethnicity, across race is the only way that we can be able to defeat criminals. When we no longer look at one another on the basis of our prejudices. I remain shuttered by this incident. The loss of Taegrin has not only shocked and robbed the Morris family, but the city as a whole and the country at large. May Taegrin’s soul rest in peace. It is my sincere wish that the security services do their best to arrest these oxygen thieves, and put them behind bars, where they belong,” says grieving Gungubele.
During the service, Van der Westhuizen assured the community that investigations were at an advanced stage.
He assured community members that those responsible for the fatal hijacking will soon be arrested and sent to jail.
“We also need your assistance to arrest the responsible criminals, but also allow us to do the job that we are being paid for,” appealed the cluster commander.
In respect of Taegrin, a march was held on Friday at 2pm. Participants marched from Daisy Street, where the incident occurred, to the abandoned building at 39 Market Street, next to the Boksburg Lake, where both the body of Taegrin and the hijacked car was recovered.
A candlelighting ceremony will also be held at 6.30pm outside the Reiger Park public Swimming Pool.
Dozens of Parkdene community members also participated in separate memorial services in Parkdene. They held a prayer and candlelighting ceremony in Parkdene on Thursday evening.
As thousands of mourners are expected to attend the funeral service of Taegrin on Saturday morning, the funeral service will be held at the Reiger Park Stadium, a larger venue to allow all his admirers to attend together.
