A man climbed onto the roof of a house and fired a shot straight down at the sofa where the owner of the house used to sit. Fortunately, Mr Nthetsheleseni Tshikovha (37) of Maniini, near Thohoyandou, was not sitting on the sofa on the night of the incident, otherwise the bullet would have gone through his head and killed him instantly. As if that was not enough, two shots were also fired at his home during the night.

Tshikovha claims that the police failed him, because they allegedly refused to open cases about both incidents. "They said they cannot open a case, because there is no suspect. I am no longer safe and I fear for my life, because the hit men can come back. The police have totally failed me because we rely on them for protection. They seemed to be uninterested in my case and I no longer know what to do."

An architect by profession, Tshikovha said problems arose when his father, Gilbert Tshikovha, a headman at Maniini, gave him a piece of land to rule. "I was supposed to have been installed as headman in December 2002, but some family members were jealous about the position offered to me by my father. Since then, I have been receiving death threats and there were delays in my installation. I believe this is done by the people who know me very well, but I will never rest until I determine exactly who is behind this."

About the first bullet incident, Tshikovha said: "It was on Friday night (October 12) and I heard a noise outside. I did not suspect anything and I continued watching TV through the door of my sitting room, while I was relaxing in my bedroom. I believe that the evil people noticed that the TV was on and they guessed that I was busy watching it. That is why they shot straight at my sofa and they were quite sure that they were going to kill me. This was done by people who know me very well. They also know the inside of my house and that is why they were able to shoot straight to my sofa. I was so shocked that I did not know what to do. I took the cartridges to the Thohoyandou police the following morning, but the response I received from the police was disappointing."

About the second incident he said: "Two bullets were fired at night (Tuesday, October 16) and I took the cartridges to the police the following day. They told me the same story, viz. that they cannot open a case because I have no suspect. Police said they would investigate but they have done nothing so far. Maybe they want to act after I have been shot dead. I no longer feel safe at my home."

Regional police spokesperson Capt Mashudu Malelo said it was not true that the police refused to open cases following the two incidents. "He wanted us to open a case of attempted murder but we told him that, according to the elements of crime, we can only open a case of malicious damage to property after his roof was damaged by a bullet. Our doors are open and he is free to come to us to discuss the matter. How can we turn someone away whilst it is our duty to assist them? If he feels that the police did not handle his case well, he is free to contact the management of the station, because we practice an open door policy."