Following a misunderstanding with an 18-year-old granddaughter, her 68-year-old grandmother allegedly collapsed and died.
The grandmother, from Inzinga near Impendle in the KwaZulu-Natal midlands, died after she found it difficult to breath.
She died on Saturday at a local clinic.
According to the woman’s daughter, her mother got into an argument with her granddaughter over a breakfast meal.
She then collapsed and found it hard to breathe.
The grandmother was rushed to the clinic, where she was administered oxygen but later died.
The woman indicated that the granddaughter was raised by the grandmother after her own mother died.
She also added that the family was shocked by the incident.
“She took medication for high blood pressure but she has never had lung problems. We did not expect her to die this way at all,” she said.
The granddaughter has moved to the neighbour’s home while the family plan the funeral.
However, KwaZulu-Natal social development MEC Nonhlanhla Khoza in a statement termed the incident as “brutal and callous”.
Khoza said it was really shocking that the pensioner died in the hands of a supposed protector.
She called on communities throughout the province to stand against crimes directed at older citizens.
“We have been travelling the length and breadth of the province educating the people about the rights of older persons, but we continue to witness these distasteful and barbaric acts against them,” she added.
A team of social workers have been dispatched to provide psychosocial support to the family and to ensure that the matter is being reported to the police.
