Family of slain UJ student were pinning their hopes on his future

JOHANNESBURG - The family of an 18-year-old University of Johannesburg student who was killed during a shooting incident in Braamfontein said they were pinning their hopes on his future.

Nkosingiphile Nxumalo was killed by a stray bullet in a taxi violence-related attack last week.

It is understood gunmen opened fire on a car parked on the side of the road during the shooting, a university bus was hit, resulting in two students being shot.

Higher Education Minister Blade Nzimande visited the bereaved family in Auckland Park on Monday.

Nxumalo, was commuting via a university bus to his off-campus accommodation, located two kilometres away, when he fell victim to a stray bullet.

The second-year accounting student, originally from Newcastle, is the youngest among seven siblings, raised by a mother who works as a domestic worker.

Higher Education Minister Blade Nzimande said the 18-year-old student had a bright future.

"This is a NFSAS beneficiary, a Bachelor of Commence Accounting student, this was a future CA. When we send our children to university, we want to fetch them in their gowns and we want to celebrate them, not in coffins."

Director of Student Relations at UJ Nolitha Vukuza said Nxumalo's passing caused significant trauma among members of the university community.

"Going to the residence and collecting the items and the belongings hasn't been a very easy task and so we are sitting with a very difficult moment."

The family is expected to identify Nxumalo’s body at the Johannesburg Mortuary.