18 September 2015
P. 5
R1-20/FREE
“Mizz Dee” is back on the scene
Mob allegedly kills man
P. 2 Government comments on Lephalale situation
P. 4 The Molwantwa family were grieved by the need to dig their stillborn daughter’s grave themselves after municipal officials failed to do so. Photo supplied Lizzy Bapela Nothing in the world can improve the experience of a family who has to bury a child. Some things, however, can make the experience infinitely worse, as the family Molwantwa found on Thursday, 10 September when they arrived at the cemtery in Modimolle to bury their stillborn baby girl, who was not given a name. Although they had allegedly phoned on
Wednesday, 9 September, to arrange for a grave to be dug for the funeral on the 10th, they arrived to find that no grave had been dug. With no municipal employees in sight, the family borrowed shovels from a nearby group who were building a mausoleum and dug the baby’s grave themselves. The mother of the baby, Rachel Molwantwa, told the BEAT that they had phoned the municipal official in charge of the graveyard to find out what the confusion was. “We spoke to Fannie Rihlanfhu, who promised to send staff to the site. They arrived
too late, as we had already sorted out a grave. I spoke to him again on Monday and asked for a meeting to discuss the matter, and he said that I will not be refunded. I feel powerless and confused. I’m going through a lot and do not feel the need for more stress,” said the grieving mother. The grave was dug by two family members, Sunnyboy and William. In his response, Rihlanfhu said that the Molwantwa family booked for Wednesday and did not arrive, resulting in another family using the grave dug for the Molwantwas. He
said that there was some misunderstanding among the parties involved and the family proceeded to dig their own grave even though the municipality was arranging for their staff members to assist them. “They dug the wrong grave number,” he said. “We have arranged to meet with her and discuss the matter further and reach a solution. Refunding her is not a problem, as long as we can sit and talk and take it from there,” said Rihlanfhu. He said that the comment was not official as he is not an official media spokesperson.