Poverty is suspected to be the driving force behind a mother’s decision to poison her three children before taking her own life.
The tragedy unfolded in the early hours of Monday morning in Lusikisiki, in South Africa’s Eastern Cape province.
According to provincial police spokesperson Colonel Priscilla Naidu, 41-year-old Veziwe Ntsizela allegedly woke up her four daughters, aged between four and 14, from their sleep and instructed them to join her for a prayer in another room, despite having slept with their grandmother.
Instead of prayer, the children were reportedly taken to a forest in the Luzuphu locality, where they were forced to consume life-threatening pills. Naidu revealed that the 14-year-old daughter managed to resist and escape.
“The child sought help from a nearby homestead, and police were notified. The bodies of the three children were found, however, the mother was missing,” Naidu said.
On the following Tuesday morning, the mother’s lifeless body was discovered in dense bushes by the Grahamstown Search and Rescue Unit. It was less than 100 meters from where her children had perished.
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The victims were identified as Iyapha Ntsizela, 4, Phila Ntsizela, 8, and 12-year-old Inga Ntsizela. The police are currently investigating three counts of murder and an inquest.
Preliminary investigations indicate that poverty may have played a significant role in this tragic event, according to Naidu.
Unfortunately, this is not the first such incident to occur in the Eastern Cape. Just last month in Butterworth, another mother poisoned and killed her three children.
Lieutenant General Nomthetheleli Mene, the Provincial Commissioner, expressed deep concern over the situation. “If the motive was allegedly driven by poverty, this raises a profound concern about the struggles that some members of our community face daily,” she stated.
Mene emphasized the importance of reaching out to those in need, offering support, and fostering a sense of community. “Poverty should never drive anyone to such a desperate and tragic act, and our hearts go out to the family and friends of the victims,” she added.
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