HER heart sank as she heard the sickening scrape of metal on metal: a taxi had forced its way past her car in the slow crawl of the bumper-to-bumper morning traffic.
Abigail Kubeka (79) sighed and wondered how much time she was going to lose getting to work at the SABC studios in Auckland Park. Her window was open, as the weather was pleasant that October morning when the taxi screeched to a halt in front of her and the driver got out.
The Generations: The Legacy actress adjusted her oversized sunglasses and waited for the man to come over and apologize. “The taxi was driving on the pavement when it scratched my car. So, I know I wasn’t in the wrong.”
They would exchange details, she thought, and she would continue the slow 35-minute trek from Orlando West on to the M70, the Soweto Highway, to Auckland Park.
Then she realized the driver, a man in his 20s, was moving quickly “and aggressively” towards her, swearing loudly and accusing her of damaging his vehicle.
“I said to him, ‘Hey, but you’re the one who scratched my car’.”
Without warning, the young man began punching the grandmother in the face. “Can you imagine it? Me with my big sunglasses. It’s funny that my glasses didn’t break . . .” she says, her voice trailing off.
Caught in a flurry of punches, Mam’ Abigail managed to push herself over to the passenger seat of her car, she recalls. “It was like he was fighting a man of his age. I hadn’t even been rude to him. I asked him: ‘Why are you beating me up?’”
The cruel beating ended when other motorists came to her rescue, pulled the taxi driver from her car and restrained him. Bewildered by what had happened to her, the actress said she just sat there.
Denne historien er fra 14 November 2019-utgaven av Drum English.
Start din 7-dagers gratis prøveperiode på Magzter GOLD for å få tilgang til tusenvis av utvalgte premiumhistorier og 9000+ magasiner og aviser.
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Denne historien er fra 14 November 2019-utgaven av Drum English.
Start din 7-dagers gratis prøveperiode på Magzter GOLD for å få tilgang til tusenvis av utvalgte premiumhistorier og 9000+ magasiner og aviser.
Allerede abonnent? Logg på
Homegrown Heroes
Drum speaks to two volunteers in the Covid-19 vaccine trial and the professor heading the team in Africa
The Big Clean Up
Whenever a Covid-19 case is confirmed at a shop, they call in the deep-cleaners. We find out exactly how they disinfect stores and supermarkets
I'm Back & Better!
Babes Wodumo shares what she’s been up to in lockdown – and there’s some new music on the horizon
Not An Easy Ride
Taxi commuters and industry players tell DRUM what’s driving them to defy lockdown rules
Mam' Mary Bows Out
Iconic actress Mary Twala is fondly remembered by friends and family for her humour and talent
‘They Lived For Each Other'
This Cape Town teen’s parents died from Covid-19 on the same day. Now she’s alone and battling the virus too
Stranger Than Fiction
For actor Mangaliso Ngema and his daughter Khosi Ngema, her role in Blood & Water was like watching their family’s real-life story unfold
I Was Raped By A Pastor
His accusations against a well-known man of the cloth turned an Eastern Cape man’s life into turmoil but now more victims have spoken out
My Fight With Life And Death
More Covid-19 patients, too few beds and staff, constant sanitising and personal fears – a Western Cape doctor shares her experience
I AM ENOUGH
Ten years after being set alight, Thembi Maphanga is living life to the fullest
