He liked his job from childhood, but he did not achieve what he was expecting because of his untimely death…

Police officers from Gauteng and Limpopo, traffic officers, family and friends and several politicians paid their last respects to the 23-year-old Const Hulisani Matshidze, who died in a car accident a fortnight ago. He was killed on the notorious “road of death” between Louis Trichardt and Elim.

He was an SAPS member at the Railway Police in Tswane in Gauteng. He was driving home to Venda to see his parents and other family members. According to reports, his Toyota Run X broke a CV-joint, rolled twice, and killed Hulisani. His friend, Masala Muthambi (25), was seriously injured. Although Muthambi was walking with crutches, he attended the funeral of his friend.

Mr Mackson Matshidze, father of Hulisani, said that the family was totally shocked by his untimely death. He added that his son was helping to teach the village to combat crime. “He was a pillar of strength to the family and the whole community,” Mr Matshidze said.

The station commissioner of Tswane SAPS, Sr Supt Nyambeni Phophi, said that Matshidze was a dedicated, humble, friendly and devoted policeman. “He was a fearless policeman while he was on duty, because he loved his job,” Phophi said.

The funeral service was held at Mianzwi-Tshimbupfe in Vuwani and Const Matshidze was buried at Tshimbupfe cemetery on Sunday.