By Lehlohonolo Lehana.
@AdvDali_Mpofu,Twitter.
The family of the father the so-called “Tembisa 10” babies have said that that unless proven otherwise, in their minds, the babies do not exist.
In a statement issued on Tuesday afternoon, the Tsotetsi family, relatives of the alleged mother’s boyfriend Tebogo Tsotetsi, said that he had not yet seen the decuplets, and relied solely on Gosiame Sithole’s updates of their birth.
“We appreciate the public interest and support for the decuplets, and with no proof of their existence, we firmly believe it is in the interests of everyone to conclude they do not exist, until proven otherwise. We will now shift our attention to finding Gosiame Sithole while praying for her safe return.”
With uncertainties and rumours running rampant, which the family said was of “major concern”, without any proof that the decuplets exist, they have no choice but to acknowledge that the babies do not exist.
“The family never claimed to have seen the decuplets and relied on the call and WhatsApp confirmation from the girlfriend. The family lost contact with Sithole and with her phone off they opened a case of a missing person.”
In the statement, the family said they met on Tuesday at their Thembisa home.
“Tebogo confirmed he has not seen the decuplets and relied on his girlfriend, who called to inform him of their birth. He made several attempts to visit his girlfriend and the babies but she failed to disclose her whereabouts and the condition of their babies.
“The current uncertainties and public discourse about the decuplets is of major concern to the family, especially in the absence of any proof of the decuplets’ existence other than telephonic and WhatsApp messages from the mother.
The family has resolved and concluded there are no decuplets born between Tebogo Tsotetsi and Gosiame Sithole, until proven otherwise, and wishes to apologise for any inconvenience and embarrassment,” the statement reads.
The contact person on the statement, Russell Baloyi, confirmed he was the family spokesperson and that the statement was legitimate.
Sithole, meanwhile, has responded to the Tsotetsi family statement, denying claims that she was missing, and insisting she did give birth to the babies.
She also said the family only released the statement after they “met some politicians”.
Gosiamo #Sithole responds to the Tsotetsi family statement. She denies she’s missing, and that did not deliver the babies. She says the was released after the Tsotetsis met some politicians. Says they are angry because they wanted to benefit financially from the public donations. pic.twitter.com/YCNs14ezYC
— Mr Putin (@pietrampedi) June 15, 2021
Sithole said the family was angry “because they wanted to benefit financially from the public donations”, Rampedi tweeted on Tuesday night.
“I’m hurting. Everything they [the Tsotetsi family] said about me is incorrect. They are unfair. They are doing things to abuse me,” Sithole said.