NARROW ESCAPE: MP and friend survive violent knife attack on Gqeberha’s unlit beachfront

After a harrowing knife attack on Gqeberha’s beachfront, DA MP Baxolile Nodada warns of rising crime rates and demands action to restore safety in the community.

A violent attack on DA MP Baxolile Nodada and his friend on Gqeberha’s beachfront, in which his friend was stabbed multiple times, has been raised in Parliament amid renewed concerns about safety in one of the metro’s prime tourism hubs.

Speaking in Parliament this week, Nodada linked the attack to what he described as long-standing municipal failures, accusing authorities of gambling with residents’ safety in a city grappling with non-functioning streetlights, cable theft and inadequate security patrols.

“Mr President, I was not meant to be standing at this podium today, but I insisted because I wanted to deliver this message directly to the Presidency.

“Today, I could have been lying in a hospital bed fighting for my life, or my family could have been preparing my funeral while everyone in this Parliament sent their condolences.

“This weekend, my friend and I were victims of a crime that almost cost us our lives. We were violently attacked. He was stabbed six times while I fought for my life against drug-addicted criminals who exploited a dark alleyway to Humewood Beach Park, where stolen cables were never repaired, streetlights did not work, bush clearing was not done and there was no security patrol,” Nodada said.

His remarks during a parliamentary debate on President Cyril Ramaphosa’s budget vote on 2 June come while concerns grow over Nelson Mandela Bay’s failing streetlight network, where thousands of faults have left large parts of the city in darkness due to budget pressures, procurement inefficiencies and slow repair work.

Tourism stakeholders have also raised the alarm over deteriorating conditions and safety risks along the beachfront, warning that poor infrastructure and rising insecurity are undermining visitor confidence and threatening the metro’s tourism economy.

In an interview with Daily Maverick on Thursday, Nodada said he and friends went for dinner in the Humewood area after attending a wedding.

Nodada had parked his vehicle opposite the Humewood Hotel on Beach Road, one of the metro’s prime tourism nodes.

After dinner, he and his friend walked back towards the vehicle when they were confronted by three armed men who emerged from a dark, poorly maintained alleyway.

His friend, who sustained six stab wounds during the attack, has since been discharged from hospital and is recovering at home.

“My friend has since been discharged and is stable. His stab wounds were