Death is life's hardest reality, says the Holy Bible, but it is a perfect tool for sharpening our understanding. It gropes into human affairs and leaves indelible marks which oftentimes refuse to be erased by tears or empathy.

They that have experienced death don't write of it; those that aid the manifestation of death may be remorseful but time is likely to clear their consciences. It is those that have seen the images of death that live to tell tales of death; those that saw death looming large in their faces.

And to Fanuel Majiga, a resident of Sekeni Village, Group Village Headman Lyson, terrible images of death continue haunting his life even after six months. The 43-year-old who works for Illovo Sugar Company as a turbine operator at Front-End Section has a testimony that is bound to stand the test of time.

"It was on 19th May this year when I was coming from Misofolo on my way to Nchalo where I stay," narrates Majiga.

He says Misofolo is about 10 kilometres away from Nchalo.

Majiga who also deals in the buying and selling of cattle, uses a bicycle in his business escapades, and on this fateful day he was using the same mode of transport. He was cycling on the M1 Road and just after passing Mkombezi Bridge (about a kilometre from Nchalo), he saw two men going in the same direction as he. It was around 8 pm.

"As a cyclist, I rang the bell, and these men separated where one began to walk on the right hand side of the road while the other was walking on the left hand side. As I was about to go past them, one of the two men pounced on me and began to beat me - his friend followed suit," Majiga says.

He says the two men beat him to the extent that they broke his left arm. He then fell down and passed out. While he remained unconscious, the thugs ran away with his bicycle, two cellular phones, a torch, three cells and money amounting to K15, 500.

"By the grace of God, I came to and went straight home where I woke up my wife. She went on to wake up the village head and a cyclist who took me to Nchalo Police Station. After recording my statement, the police didn't hesitate, but gave me a report which I presented at St Montfort Hospital," recounts Majiga.

At the hospital, he was admitted.

Then he says around 4:30 a.m. two police officers visited the hospital and asked him if he could recognise two cellular phones which they had brought.

"I told them that I recognised one of the phones as mine. I was told that it was probably one of the two thugs who had been caught with the phones who was in their custody."

Majiga spent five days in hospital. His broken arm was treated with Plaster of Paris. After being discharged, he went straight to the police station where he was shown the man who was found with his cellular phone, but he could not recognise him because he had been attacked at night.

Majiga's case was brought before the court of law two days later.

"The day of hearing the case came and as a state witness, I went to court where I submitted my part of the case. I described my cellular phone and all other things that indicated that it was indeed my phone. I won the case," relates Majiga.

Although the thug didn't admit that they had broken his arm, the fact that he had been found in possession of Majiga's phone was enough to convince the judge that he was guilty of the offence he had been accused of.

Majiga adds that even his statements kept changing as he attempted to position himself on the right side of the law in spite of all the evidence that weighed against him.

Two of the defendants were acquitted while the one who was found with the cellular phone was convicted and sentenced to 129 months imprisonment with hard labour.

"Up to now, one of my two phones, the torch and three cells haven't been found. The other phone and money amounting to K12, 950 were returned to me. Still, even though I lost a number of things, I thank God that I am still alive to this day. I saw death coming and up to now I keep being haunted by it," thus signs off Majiga.