PA Activist Kayzel Forbes Recounts Terrifying Shooting She Believes Targeted Her Outside Her Kariega Home

Patriotic Alliance (PA) activist and whistleblower Kayzel Forbes says she narrowly escaped a shooting outside her Kariega home on Monday night. Forbes, known for exposing alleged corruption within Nelson Mandela Bay’s public healthcare system, believes the attack was linked to her activism.

Forbes reportedly told Independent Online that she was outside her home and on a video call with a friend when the incident occurred.

“So what happened was a car was passing by and I thought that this person was looking for the shop, because next to my house is a shop,” she explained. “And then I thought to myself, OK, but here’s a car coming back. So I then immediately knew that he drove around the block … then he put his fog lights on and stopped in front of my house.”

Moments later, she said, gunfire erupted.

“As I was on the phone with a friend, the maroon Polo stopped and from the passenger side they were shooting out of the window,” she said. “Me being on the video call with my friend, I told her, ‘shit, someone is shooting at me’.”

Forbes said she dropped to the ground as bullets flew past her. “When it’s raining bullets, you need to lay low,” she said. “I fell into my front door and my daughter and her friend pulled me in. We thought that I was shot. I went immediately into panic mode.”

Neighbours later told her they heard up to five shots as the attackers sped away. Police spokesperson Lieutenant Colonel Siphokazi Mawisa confirmed that officers responded to the scene, but said no one was injured and no criminal case had been opened at the time.

Activist Links Attack to Anti-Corruption Campaign

Forbes, who has spent months exposing conditions at Uitenhage Provincial Hospital and Dora Nginza Hospital, said she believes the shooting was not random.

“I’m that person who would go there and make a live video exposing these people not helping our people — patients sleeping on the floors,” she said. “They’re claiming at Uitenhage Provincial Hospital and Dora Nginza that there are no beds, but I know there are. The chief executives are sitting in hotels having vacations while our people suffer.”

Her videos, shared widely on social media, have drawn both support and backlash. Many residents have commended her for speaking out about corruption and poor healthcare conditions.

“People tell me, ‘you are brave, Kayzel, you say what we can’t’. But now this happens and I’m scared for my life, for my child, for my family. Still, I can’t stop,” she said.

‘I Won’t Be Silenced,’ Says Fearless Kayzel Forbes

Forbes stated that her activism was inspired by the poor state of local healthcare services. She described seeing elderly patients and children sleeping on hospital floors while management misused resources.

“I’ve seen old people sleeping on the floors because they say there’s no beds,” she said. “At the same time, they are renting out houses meant for doctors and nurses. So where is that money going to? Our people’s files are getting lost. Our babies are dying. Our elderly are dying. Somebody needs to take accountability for this.”

Recently, she also criticised the closure of the Rosedale Clinic, which was moved to another centre, making it harder for residents to access care.

“They moved Rosedale Clinic to a centre here in the northern areas. But that too is not right because you’re talking about people here who cannot even afford a loaf of bread. Now they must take a taxi to get there. And when they get there, they don’t even get medicine,” she said.

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“I’m not going to stop,” she said. “If they think shooting at me will make me keep quiet, they’re wrong. I’ll keep fighting for our people. Maybe they wanted to scare me, but now I know what I’m fighting for is even more important. I’m still here,” she said quietly. “And I’m not going anywhere.”

The bullet marks left on her front yard are a chilling reminder of that night.

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