Some people lost their lives during the prohibition period of alcohol as they started consuming metgelated spirits in efforts of getting drunk.
Griffiths Mtjali a 46 year old man from Tsakane consumed an illegally sold beverage, which is said to be made with highly consecrated alcohol spirits, mixed with water and some fruits.Griffiths lost his life due to dehydration, he vomited a lot after consuming it as he extremely craved alcohol, when the family called an ambulance for him it was already too late. “We do not understand why people who sell those type of illegal liquids wherein they put lethal spirits for people to get drunk and in that process they risk people’s lives,” Griffiths’ mother sadly expressed.
Emergency personnel found him in a compromised situation and they tried their best to save his life unfortunately they couldn’t. One of the deceased’s nephew said: “We found him in the morning struggling to breath and he was already losing his speech and mobility. He couldn’t walk or do anything for that matter. We did not know that he had consumed this lethal beverage, we only found out after the post-mortem was done.”
His family is left in pain as he was the breadwinner and now he’s no more. “What will it take for the owners of these alcohol stores to stop making beverages that kill people and they see nothing wrong with it?”
His friends are still in shock because on the 31st of January 2021, they were with him and they still have questions as to what really happened to him, because he was all happy and jolly not showing signs that he was not okay. They also disclosed that the alcohol was strong but because they wanted something to get them drunk, they carried on drinking.
“We have buried him in agony and we as his friends will no longer drink alcohol that has those lethal spirits in them.” The government has lifted the ban and most people are happy as they can now access alcohol in a safe manner. But the question still remains from the family, what will happen when the alcohol restricted and it can’t be accessed by the people.
By Zoleka Batsha
