Transport Minister Sindisiwe Chikunga has welcomed the 10-year imprisonment sentence imposed on the driver who caused the collision that claimed the lives of her son, daughter-in-law and four grandchildren in 2022.
Speaking after the Ladysmith regional court imposed the sentence on Wednesday, Chikunga commended the court for the sentence and said justice has been done.
"However, it is not going to bring back my children. It is six children, who had a bright future ahead of them," Chikunga said.
Handing down the sentence, Regional Court Magistrate, E L Louw, said she had considered the seriousness of the offence, the interest of the public and the accused's personal circumstances in passing sentence.
Louw said the accused, Celumusa Ngwenya, was 35 years old, had three children and was an amputee.
Ngwenya had his right leg amputated following a road accident in 2018 and he bought a bakkie after obtaining R1.8 million in compensation from the Road Accident Fund (RAF) in 2022.
The magistrate imposed 10 years direct imprisonment and cancelled Ngwenya's driving licence.
Four months before the tragic crash involving the Minister's family, Ngwenya applied for a driving licence to drive heavy motor vehicles. The application was made at the Randburg driving licence testing centre, where he was issued a licence to drive a light motor vehicle.
Circumstance surrounding the issuing of the licence are deemed suspicious and the Road Traffic Management Corporation (RTMC) will conduct a thorough investigation.
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The magistrate found that Ngwenya was grossly negligent, noting he was driving at excessive speed and had ignored a barrier line before the collision occurred.
"Evidence showed that he was driving at 153 kilometres per hour and operated the vehicle with his left leg because he had a prosthetic right leg. There was no reason, there was no emergency, and the accused said his children were at home," the magistrate said.
RTMC CEO Advocate, Makhosini Msibi, gave evidence in aggravation of sentence and pointed out that road crashes were costing the economy R198 billion a year.
Msibi said the road on which the crash happened was notorious for deadly collisions and was classified as one of the national hazardous routes.
He said Ngwenya had not made any attempts to stop or reduce speed before the collision happened, and the mechanical investigation of the vehicle showed that the throttle was open, indicating that the vehicle was still in motion even after impact.
The CEO said the RTMC is investigating the circumstance in which Ngwenya was issued a licence, and that the officials who processed his application will be held accountable.
