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Brain Tebele quickly packed his bags and fled his accommodation in fear of his life.
Tebele had panicked after he heard gunshots close to his room in the old Belhar near Belhar Primary – a house he had been sent to by the University of the Western Cape while his application for accommodation was pending.
He felt it was best to return to campus to try again search for another place.
“I did some research after I heard stories that Belhar was owned by a relative of one the known drug lords in the Western Cape. After I heard those gunshots I left quickly,” Tebele said.
He said he had not only heard about the relationship between the notorious druglord and the owner but had seen the housekeeper carrying a gun.
“I was scared, and she was on our necks for non-payment of rent,” he said.
The university had entered into a deal with the owner to keep them there while government funding scheme – the National Student Financial Aid Scheme – was processing applications for payments.
Tebele said he was referred to Belhar by the university’s central housing committee in February and he stayed there for a few weeks.
While there, he heard about the history of the place.
“During the last week of March, that’s when the drama started. I noticed the housekeeper had a gun on her back and I decided to do some research about the place,” he said.
He left the place shortly following the gunshots.
The names of the alleged drug lord and the relative who owns the property are known to the City Press. However, attempts to get their contact details proved futile.
The newspaper uncovered that another UWC student, Chris Tabang Kgashane, was found dead in Belhar in November 2015.
In an internal university statement, it was said that Kgashane died in an incident “most likely as a result of murder, related to a mugging, on November 23 2015” opposite Belhar High School.
The statement said he was robbed of his laptop and other items.
UWC spokesperson Luthando Tyhalibongo said the university was deeply saddened by Kgashane’s loss.
“He was a vibrant student who had a promising future stolen.”
He said the university had not been informed of the outcome of a police investigation into his death.
The spokesperson confirmed that police had suspected a foiled robbery.
He said there were two sides of Belhar: an old and new side.
“The university only vets accommodation in the new Belhar, which is a suburb.”
He said staff also stayed in the new Belhar.
The university introduced a shuttle to the suburb in February 2016 and there were quad bike patrollers added to assist police with patrols, he said.
He said the old side of Belhar was away from the university and was not recommended due to gangsterism-related issues.
Tyhalibongo confirmed that the university’s residential services had met with the owner of Belhar, who allegedly is related to the druglord.
But, he said the residential services were not aware of an affiliation between the two.
He said the new Belhar was not immune to criminal activities and the university was working with neighbouring watch and police to ensure visibility of quad bike security guards.
The introduction of the shuttle service was also convenient and assisted students, Tyhalibongo said.
This article forms part of a series on student accommodation in South Africa. Other articles in the series are:
- ‘The university has abandoned me’ – student quits due to housing issue
- Female student ‘had to sleep in an unlocked flat’ in Joburg for weeks
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