Kimberley - While the search for missing five-year-old Keitumetse Magwadibane has been called off as investigations proceed, the distraught parents of the young girl still continue to pray that their daughter would be found.
“If she is still alive, she must be returned home. But if she is no longer alive, we wish to bury her. We just want to see her and have closure,” her emotional father, Frank Magwadibane, said on Thursday.
Keitumetse went missing after going to a local tuck shop in Phuthanang with a friend on July 14.
More than two weeks after her disappearance there is still no indication of what has happened to the child, despite the fact that four people, one of whom is believed to be a sangoma, have been arrested in connection with the incident.
Frank said on Thursday that he and the family were severely traumatised and struggling to deal with Keitumetse’s disappearance.
“We cannot find peace as we do not know what happened to Keitumetse. Our wish now is that she would be found.”
He said the incident had taken its toll on the family emotionally and physically.
“I keep thinking that she is a girl and still so very young. Wherever she is being held, she will never be able to fight the people who are keeping her hostage and she also cannot defend herself.
“I am sure she is crying for us. It has also been extremely cold and we do not know under what conditions she is being held. All these thoughts about what is being done to her and how she is coping is driving me insane.”
The parents said the arrests of the four suspects had provided some clues but the truth still needed to come out.
It is believed that one of the suspects has turned State witness.
“We are hopeful that the investigations will lead to the full truth coming out,” Frank said.
He said that those responsible did not understand the impact their actions have had on the family.
“These people just took my child, we do not know why. They cannot comprehend what damage their actions have caused. I have put all my power and energy into raising that child. Raising a child is not easy and I had so many plans for her future.
“My older children also still asking where their sister is. All I can tell them is that we are still searching for her. One can see that this thing has even affected them. The eight-month-old baby often cries because she used to play with Keitumetse.”
He added they were, however, very grateful for the support of the community.
“We are very grateful for the assistance we received from the community, the police and Wanya Tsotsi. If it was not for Wanya Tsotsi the suspects may not have been found.
“The people from the community also assisted us in the search for Keitumetse. Everyone really reached out to us. We are also confident that the police will do their best and we will get more answers as the investigation continues,” Frank said.
The mother of the child, Margaret Magwadibane, said she also do not understand why her child was taken.
“I never imagined something like this could happen to us. I do not understand why they took my child. We are not rich nor do we live a luxurious life. My husband was dismissed from his job a week before this tragedy hit us. We are now both unemployed and the only income we have is from temporary jobs when he does tiling and building for people. I do not understand why people would want to steal our joy by stealing our child,” she said.
Spokesman for crime-fighting organisation Wanya Tsotsi, Pantsi Obusitse, said they were also still hopeful that the child would be found.
“It has been an exhausting period, both physically and emotionally. However, we cannot give up hope and must continue believing that there will be a breakthrough. The parents of the child rely on us so we must be strong for them and push through. We do not want this to turn into another Riana (Moshoeshoe) case. We need to give these parents peace of mind and find the child,” Obusitse said.
He said the organisation was working in partnership with the police on the matter.
“The police have requested the organisation to stop the searches in the meantime as they are still interrogating the suspects. The police said they will give us direction on where to search as the investigation continues.”
He added that all possible leads were followed up in order to find the child.
“We searched Promised Land, Phuthanang, Snake Park, Platfontein and the Barkly road area. We are happy that some leads were found and are positive that we will get closer to the truth.”
Police spokeswoman, Sergeant Majang Skalkie, said their investigation into the matter continues.
“The investigation is still ongoing. We are following up information as we receive it. We will continue the search for the child as we receive information,” said Skalkie.
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