13 November 2006
A Prominent East London doctor has been killed in what police suspect may
have been a failed hijacking in Butterworth. The former chief superintendent of
E L Complex hospital, Doctor Shadrack Zamani Ndindwa, 59, a father of three,
was found dead in his capsized motor vehicle on Kentani Road in Zitulele
Township in Butterworth. "We suspect he might have been robbed or hijacked
because some of his belongings were missing. We believe there might have been
some foul play," said police spokesperson Captain Jackson Manatha.
Police were investigating the circumstances surrounding the doctor's death
and are awaiting a postmortem report. The deceased's distraught widow, Ndileka
Ndindwa, told the Daily Dispatch yesterday about her shock at losing a loving
husband to whom she had been married for 26 years. I last saw him on Monday
when we had lunch in East London. I didn't see him on Friday when we he came
home because I was still working. As usual, he went to play pool but he never
got back.
"He was a very dedicated man. At one stage he was the only doctor in
Butterworth and worked hard for people. No one could stop him from doing his
work," said Ndindwa. She also recalled their first meeting over a table tennis
game in 1976. "He never accepted that I defeated him on the day because he kept
on saying he let me win, but that was the beginning of our life because we
ended up marrying in 1980," said Ndindwa.
The Eastern Cape Health Department yesterday sent its condolences to the
family. "We are shocked by the news. He left us at a difficult time of a
shortage of doctors. He played a significant role in our hospitals," said
health department spokesperson Sizwe Kupelo. Ndindwa had acted as
superintendent at Cecilia Makiwane hospital and was a head of quality
assurance, and as head of monitoring and evaluation made significant changes in
service delivery, Kupelo said. "Our hospitals have changed because of his work
for 20 years. We salute him in his work for making a better life for
others."
Health MEC Nomsa Jajula extended her condolences to his family, colleagues
and friends.
Issued by: Department of Health, Eastern Cape Provincial Government
13 November 2006
Source: Eastern Cape Department of Health (http://www.ecdoh.gov.za/)
