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‘HOW I ESCAPED HANGMAN’

10/10/2022 08:45:00 Sithembile Hlatshwayo

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BHUNYA – As the world commemorates the 19th World Day Against the Death Penalty today, a former death row prisoner has relived how he ‘escaped’ the hangman.

Andreas Msibi, popularly known as ‘Njandini’, who is now a reverend, narrated the events that led to him being removed from the death row. Njandini is a name that is used by gang members to describe one of their own whom they regard as a hardcore criminal. The now 82-year-old Msibi stated that he was sentenced to death in 1973. Reverend Msibi was among 22 death row prisoners at the time awaiting to be executed at the Matsapha Correctional Services, including three women. He said it was on April 1, 1977, when they were to be taken for execution during the night. “I was fast asleep when a group of officers arrived in my cell, roughly awaking and telling me to take my blankets and come out of the cell.”

He said when they arrived outside, they found vehicles belonging to the Royal Eswatini Police Service (REPS) and His Majesty’s Correctional Services (HMCS). Msibi said the officers had surrounded the building to ensure that the prisoners did not escape. He said the officers who held his hand left him and he sat down on the blankets and watched. “I heard cries from the prisoners whom we were with as they were loaded into the vehicles, handcuffed.” Msibi said the officers loaded the vans and when they were fully loaded, another van was brought in until all the prisoners were taken away, except for him. He said he saw the vehicles driving out of the prison and wondered when he would be loaded. After the last vehicle had left, the commissioner who was called Sigweva, came to him and informed him that he had been pardoned by the King, who was Sobhuza II at that time. “I was told that I would not be hanged but instead serve a life sentence.”

Msibi said the moment the commissioner communicated the message to him, he had a voice telling him to preach more while inside prison and that the time he would serve was very limited. On April 17, 1986, he was released from jail after serving 13 years. Msibi said God’s Word was fulfilled and he was meant to watch the death row prisoners being taken for execution as the Lord wanted to show him that He had saved him. He said when everything happened, he thought it was not real but a vision.

Meanwhile, he said God had communicated the pardon when he had a vision instructing him to read the book of Isaiah 45 and assuring him that whatever he would read there, he would experience. According to Msibi, he was arrested following an armed robbery, where he was with two other men. Msibi said he was employed as a security guard at Bhunya at the time.
He added that during the robbery, they were fighting to get a cash box which they later discovered had coins amounting to around E300. Msibi added that he was carrying a gun and pulled the trigger and killed a man during the robbery. Msibi said after a few months of the robbery, they were finally arrested in 1972.

Judge

He further mentioned that they stayed in jail the entire year until they were sentenced the following year in 1973, where the judge issued a ruling of execution. Msibi said during his jail time, he was a very heartless and stubborn person. During the same year, Msibi said he filed an appeal, where the judges felt he deserved the punishment. He said before the appeal, he had a vision where he was visited by an unknown man inside the cell, while he was asleep. The reverend stated that he went for the appeal as a born again person. In January 1974, he said while asleep, he had a vision where he saw the door of his cell open and a man whose face he could not see told him that from now onwards, he should pray and never quit. Msibi said before he was saved, he was someone who regarded Christianity as a stupid thing and whenever they came to preach inside the cell, he would request the police to give him a cigarette to smoke.

Responding to his visitor inside the cell, Msibi said he told him that he could not pray, but the man repeated the command three times. However, on the third instance, he told the man that ever since he was born, he had never prayed. This is when the visitor took one step backward and raised his right hand and like the biblical Saul, and he was struck by a bolt of lightning and fell down and felt his spirit leave. “The man then came towards me walking very fast and raised a finger and touched my lips before disappearing.” Msibi said he was shaken by the man’s action and woke up from the dream. While awake, he said his body shook terribly from his feet to the head. “I tried requesting the officers to give me a cigarette and they did likewise but I failed to smoke it as I continued shaking and it fell down.”

According to Msibi, this was when the pastors had come to preach in the prison cells. He said the police got worried by his condition as he continued shaking for close to an hour. The reverend said it was the last time he smoked a cigarette. Msibi said, he then started hearing the voice of the man speak from within him to do what he had been told. He said the following day, after breakfast, he again heard the voice speak to him to borrow a Bible from the people he called stupid and read it. These, he said, were the pastors who preached at the prison cells. Msibi said he fought trying to disregard the voice and finally gave in. “I looked through the cell and requested an officer to lend me a Bible and he did so.” Msibi said when the officer gave him the Bible, they actually laughed and did not believe it, even thought that he had lost his mind.

Bible

He said one of the inmates shouted and asked if he was really borrowing the Bible and he confirmed it. Msibi said for the first time in his life, he opened randomly in the book of John, chapter 11, where the story of Lazarus was told when he was raised from the tomb by Christ. He said God was talking to him that he would no longer hang or die. On the same day, he said the voice persisted that he was supposed to preach to his fellow prisoners and again, he tried to ignore. Msibi said the voice strengthened and when the preaching time approached, he peeped through his cell and told the inmates that he would be leading the service. “They gave me the Bible, but I cannot recall which verse I read but from that moment, I started preaching and never looked back.”

Msibi said he then wanted to be in control and wanted to preach at all times not giving other prisoners a chance. He said one of the prisoners who was very old asked him if he was once a Christian and backslided, which he responded to the negative. Msibi said while relating his story, the officers and other prisoners then got to understand his behaviour. He also noted that ever since he accepted Christ, everything changed in his life, even the burden of the death sentence was removed. Msibi now leads KaLuhleko Evangelical Church.