“He did not deserve this,” this was the tearful cry of Camy Dwarika, widow of slain Mangosuthu University of Technology electrical engineering lecturer Shan Dwarika during a visit by higher education, science and innovation minister Blade Nzimande at their Verulam home on Monday.
Dwarika’s youngest son, Sajiv, 31, said the family was still in the dark about his disappearance.
The minister’s visit came moments after the family visited the Phoenix mortuary where they had to identify Dwarika’s body.
Sajiv said it was a heavy blow to the family.
“This is unexpected. I would have never expected that my dad would die in such a tragic manner.”
He said his father was a role model most people looked up to.
Having graduated from the same university his father taught at, Sajiv witnessed the strides his father made at the university.
“He used to pass knowledge and help people gain knowledge.”
The days leading up to the father’s body being found had been marked with confusion.
“We pinned our hopes on his safe homecoming. But it ended up being traumatic.”
The agony was also made more difficult as his father had said anything about his life being under threat.
Nzimande said Dwarika's death was an enormous loss.
Death of MUT lecturer great loss — Nzimande
Image: Reaction Unit SA
“He did not deserve this,” this was the tearful cry of Camy Dwarika, widow of slain Mangosuthu University of Technology electrical engineering lecturer Shan Dwarika during a visit by higher education, science and innovation minister Blade Nzimande at their Verulam home on Monday.
Dwarika’s youngest son, Sajiv, 31, said the family was still in the dark about his disappearance.
The minister’s visit came moments after the family visited the Phoenix mortuary where they had to identify Dwarika’s body.
Sajiv said it was a heavy blow to the family.
“This is unexpected. I would have never expected that my dad would die in such a tragic manner.”
He said his father was a role model most people looked up to.
Having graduated from the same university his father taught at, Sajiv witnessed the strides his father made at the university.
“He used to pass knowledge and help people gain knowledge.”
The days leading up to the father’s body being found had been marked with confusion.
“We pinned our hopes on his safe homecoming. But it ended up being traumatic.”
The agony was also made more difficult as his father had said anything about his life being under threat.
Nzimande said Dwarika's death was an enormous loss.
Two men in court for MUT lecturer Shan Dwarika's murder
“Dwarika dedicated his time to lecturing for more than 26 years. He could have gone into the private sector and earned three times more than what he was getting.”
Nzimande said Dwarika's death had subverted the government's efforts to attract, develop and retain academics.
During his long-standing career at the institution, Dwarika won a number of awards and was pursuing his PhD at the Durban University of Technology where he was specialising in alternative energy.
Nzimande said while the arrest of two suspects, Sandile Mkhize, 26, and Siyabonga Maye, 35, in connection with the murder was good news, he was baffled as to why the 61-year-old was killed in such a brutal manner.
According to police spokesperson Col Robert Netshiunda, Dwarika's body was found in Mafuya Road in Inanda, north of Durban
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