THE South African Football Association (Safa) last Tuesday launched the Meyiwa Gun Campaign following the murder of Bafana Bafana skipper and goalkeeper, Senzo Meyiwa.
Through the Meyiwa Gun Campaign, Safa hopes that all illegal gun owners will surrender their unlicensed firarms to authorities in a bid to create a safer South African society.
The campaign committee comprises veteran human rights lawyer, Advocate George Bizos, Advocate Norman Arendse, SA football legend, Jomo Sono, Kate O’Regan, Judge Yvonne Makgoro, Archbishop Thabo Makgoba, Thoko Mpumlwana of the Gender Commission, Pregs Govender of the SA Human Rights Commission and Gun Free SA representative Adele Kirsten, to mention but a few.
Meyiwa was gunned down on October 26 in Vosloorus while visiting his girlfriend, Kelly Khumalo.
“The campaign we are launching today is about unlawful and illegal firearms – not legal ones. We need to mop up all illegal guns and destroy them. This campaign aims to save lives so we are appealing to society to hand in all illegal guns,” he said.
The Safa President said the association would build a statue of Mayiwa at Safa House in Nasrec, outside Johannesburg, from the destroyed firearms.
“I hear some people say why Senzo’s statue and no other captains, but from Steve Komphela, Neil Tovey, Lucas Radebe to Aaron Mokoena; all these captain you can still meet them in the streets and talk to them. The only captain you cannot talk to is Senzo,” he said.
Talking at the same event, Sono appealed to soccer stars to walk away when provoked. He said he had done so several times as some members of the public would like to earn fame by humiliating famous people.
Advocate Arendse read letters from the Meyiwa and Reeva Steenkamp families, who adding their support to the campaign. Steenkamp was shot dead by the Olympic and Paralympic athlete Oscar Pistorius on Valentine’s Day 2013.
Gun Free SA said they were in support of the campaign as illegal guns contributed to fatal violence in society.
The committee is to convene a meeting with the Police Minister Nkosinathi Nhleko and Justice and Correctional Services Minister Michael Masutha to discuss matters related to the campaign soon.
