Husband succumbs to injuries after wife sets him alight

Thandikhaya Nkohliso, who was set alight by his wife at their home in Port Alfred, Eastern Cape, succumbed to his injuries on Monday at Dora Nginza Hospital in Port Elizabeth.

Thandikhaya,24, had been in hospital for two weeks and he was admitted with third degree burns. His death comes as the country is still coming to terms with the death of Yonela Boli - a masters student at the University of Fort Hare who was stabbed to death by his girlfriend at the weekend.

Just like Boli, Thandikhaya was a breadwinner at home as he was the only one working. His mother Nomawonga, 50, said she was devastated by her son’s death.

“He died a good man because even with all the pains, he asked me to forgive his wife of four months.

"He told me that his wife was angered when an empty bottle accidentally fell on her feet while they were chilling with friends at their place. The wife was so angry and my son asked them to go to the bedroom to sort things out because they had visitors. As they were arguing, she poured him with petrol which was to be used for the lawnmower,” she said.

She said her son’s friends tried to stop her and she pretended as if everything was fine.

“A few minutes after they had left, they heard my son calling for help. When I went outside he was covered in a blanket. He did not want me to see his burns; as a result, I could not even travel with him in the ambulance as he was rushed to Port Alfred hospital.

"The doctor said he had third degree burns and 35% chances of living and he was transferred to Port Elizabeth. I am grateful to God for the two weeks that he gave us,” she said.

What made things worse for the family is the fact that the wife ran away.

Police spokesperson Capt Mali Govender said the police had managed to arrest the suspect in Western Cape.

“A case of murder has been registered and the suspect was arrested in Cape Town,” Govender said.

Thandikhaya’s murder brings the number of men who had been killed by women in the last two months to four.

In January, an 18-year-old pupil was stabbed to death outside his school in Kopanelo Secondary School in Shaleng village near Khunwana in the North West.

Early this month, a grade 12 pupil from Foschville stabbed a grade 8 boy from Thutokitso Secondary. The incident occurred in the Kokosi Township not far from the school.

In both cases the police said they were investigating the circumstances surrounding this incident.