For the first time after his culpable homicide conviction in 2012, hip hop artist and television host, Molemo ‘Jub Jub’ Maarohanye, held a press conference, recently.
Maarohanye and his co-accused Themba Tshabalala were drag racing in their two Mini Cooper S cars along Mdlalose Street in Protea Glen on March 8, 2010, when they ploughed into six teenage schoolboys.
The accident resulted in the tragic death of four teenagers, while two were critically injured.
During the press conference which flighted on Soweto TV and on his official Instagram account, the visibly nervous Maarohanye extended his gratitude to South Africa for being a “forgiving nation.”
He also thanked his family, friends and fans who supported him during that “difficult time” behind bars.
“I don’t do things according to social media, I don’t do things according to advisers, I don’t do things according to lawyers, I do things according to God’s time. So right is God’s time to do the right thing,” Maarohanye said.
In his speech, the star explained that he has invited a group of people including gospel superstars Pastor Benjamin Dube, Dr Rebecca Malope, Judith Sephuma, Lebo Sekgobela, together with Nathi Mankayi, Blaq Diamond and Mlindo the Vocalist to be part of the remake of his 2006 hit song, “Ndikhokhele.”
#JubJubConference snippet Ndikhokhele Remake ft Blaq Diamond, Nathi Mankayi, Lebo Sekgobela, DR Rebecca Malope, Ps Benjamin Dube, Mlindo and many more Dropping On Friday pic.twitter.com/NMiFHnw5jY
— Earthwell 𝑇𝑖𝑟𝑎 Mbunquka (@MbunqukaE) October 28, 2020
He confirmed: “We all joined forces and we did the remake of “Ndikhokhele” and all the proceeds of the song will go to the families of everyone who was impacted in 2010.
“I will never, no matter what, be able to erase (what happened) or try and buy a family...it can’t happen, but I’m living with these scars every single day.”
The “Uyajola99” star explained that due to parole conditions, he has never had any form of communication with the families since that fateful day.
“Everything will be done directly with the families,” he confirmed.
He also mentioned that Moja Love, the channel that he is currently employed with, will also make a donation towards the families.
“And many may ask, why now,” he added. “I don’t want to lie, I was broke, I was trying to get back on my feet, I was trying to find myself. And I didn’t want to go back to (doing) music, I didn’t want to go back to TV, I didn’t want to be seen, I was scarred for life.”
In his speech, he also expressed his gratitude to Pastor Dube, one of the people that helped him with his legal fees.
He also thanked all the musicians who are part of the “Ndikhokhele” remake, stating that their music and support who helped him through the time he was behind bars.
Maarohanye and Tshabalala were released on parole in 2017, after serving 4 years in prison.
“Ndikhokhele” is set to release across all streaming platforms on Friday, October 30.