Photo: Wonderlane via Flickr
Photo: Wonderlane via Flickr
A senseless and brutal farm murder has been reported in KwaZulu-Natal (KZN) this week, after a landowner was gunned down on his property during the middle of the day on Monday. The following details have been confirmed:
It’s understood that Collin Brits was shot dead by an armed gang. They were apparently waiting inside his home before bursting into their offensive. Nearby farmworkers reported hearing gunshots before fleeing the scene, although no-one has bore witness to the crime. A rifle and a pistol were stolen during the robbery.
Farm murder: Elandskraal, near Dundee, KZN. Collin Britz was murdered by an unknown number of attackers. Two firearms stolen.
— Yusuf Abramjee (@Abramjee) March 16, 2020
Chris Pappas is the DA’s KZN Spokesperson on Agriculture and Rural Development. He released a statement on Tuesday, saying that this is the seventh farm murder that his party have reported to KZN’s provincial government in the past seven months – to which they claim no response has been received. Pappas is demanding an immediate reply from the local ANC, in order to reassure the rural community:
“It is clear that the MEC Bongiwe Sithole-Moloi and her government are not willing or prepared to acknowledge the growing problem in KZN around farm murders and rural safety in general. The time has come for these communities to fight back and force government to sit up and acknowledge their plight.
“We call on the MEC and KZN’s Agriculture committee chairperson to convene an urgent joint sitting of the province’s Community Safety and Agriculture portfolios to address this issue and review KZN’s long outdated 2010 rural safety plan. We expect the MEC to, once and for all, act in the interests of those living in our province’s rural areas”
Chris Pappas
"The DA in KZN extends its deepest condolences to the family of farmer Collin Britz and to the community following his brutal murder in broad daylight yesterday near Elandskraal in Northern KZN."@paphiwe , MPL https://t.co/7xCNN7vsQy pic.twitter.com/IdAve7Fut8
— DA KZN (@DA_KZN) March 17, 2020