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The funeral service of Olorato Mongale took place at City hall in Bloemfontein.
Speakers have testified about how ambitious, loving and determined 30-year-old Olorato Mongale was. Mourners from different walks of life converged at the Bloemfontein City Hall for Olorato’s funeral service. Her body was discovered dumped in Lombardy West, Johannesburg on Monday a day after she went on a date with a man driving a VW POLO.
Police Commissioners, Deputy Minister of Police Polly Boshielo, and the Deputy Minister in the Presidency Responsible for Women were among the dignitaries who attended the funeral.
Mourners paid homage to Olorato, who met her untimely death in a gruesome way in Johannesburg. Her mother, Poppy Mongale, says she is holding on to the good memories of her daughter. Mongale reiterated that her daughter lived her life to the fullest. She has described her daughter as a fighter and that it was evident when she saw her body.
She says somehow Olorato knew what life had in store for her, “Olorato saw what was coming, she stopped drinking 12 months ago and I teased her about it, but she told me that I would never understand the journey she’s on. When she left on Wednesday, she told me she’s going for choir auditions and later she told me that she made into the choir, and she also said she starting with confirmation classes.”
VIDEO | Poppy Mongale holds onto the good memories of her late daughter
Olorato Mongale’s friends say they are consoled by their last impromptu meeting. They say they now feel like Olorato was saying goodbye. A friend, Karabo Mogotsi, says she had to pray to God to help her erase the image of Olorato’s tragic death. “She was loving and kind. We are glad we were able to spend that time together.”
Deputy Minister of Police, Polly Boshielo, says the state of Olorati’s body showed that the perpetrator was filled with anger. She has warned parents to stop shielding children who have committed crime. This, after the mother of the main suspect had tipped off the son, that police are looking for him.
Boshielo says the investigation continues as police are still analysing samples of blood found in the VW Polo the suspects were driving. “A life well-lived and adventurous was evident with a diverse attendance of mourners coming to pay homage to Olorato, who met her untimely death in a gruesome way in Johannesburg.”
VIDEO | Police Deputy Minister Polly Boshielo pays tribute
Free State Premier, Maqueen Letsoha-Mathae, says Olorato’s death has brought back painful memories of other women, who lost their lives due to gender-based violence. Letsoha-Mathae says women in the country are under attack, and they are afraid. Recalling some of the women who lost their lives, including among others, Sibongile Ngwana and Machaka Radebe, Letsoha-Mathae says the protection of women and children should be prioritised.
“Their voices are today silenced by the hand of a man. I was going to speak, because the minister had already spoken. Our country is indeed bleeding from a wound inflicted on our women and girl children. It is no exaggeration to say that our women are under attack and indeed afraid. And they are afraid. Who would not be, when criminals can casually kill women and dispose of their bodies like animals,” says the Premier.
The Deputy Minister of Police says there are 20 cases linked to Philangenkosi Makhanya and Bongani Mthimkhulu with the same modus of targeting women at malls. Some cases were opened in Bloemfontein, Potchefstroom, Nelspruit, Lebowakgomo and Midrand.
Makhyanya was gunned down after he opened fire when police cornered him at a residential complex in KwaZulu-Natal, in the early hours of Friday.
VIDEO | Grandmother pays tribute to her slain granddaughter
