Cape Town - The trauma of carrying your child to the clinic only to find out he is dead.
This is the pain the mother of Khayelitsha’s quadruplets went through when she arrived at her local clinic.
Inganathi Mafenuka made headlines in July last year when she gave birth to two girls and two boys at Tygerberg Hospital.
The children Bungcwele, Buchule, Bunono and Bubele were living with Mafenuka’s family in Site C.
Mafenuka is still overwhelmed by Bubele’s death, on August 1, after the funeral last week.
“Everything still seems unreal, a lot of the hows and whys in mind,” said Mafenuka.
One-year-old Bubele showed no signs of sickness that Wednesday morning after his breakfast. He was happy with his brother and sisters.
At midnight, Mafenuka woke up to Bubele struggling to breathe and vomiting.
Bubele was still weak the next morning and was rushed to the hospital with the help of a neighbour.
On arrival, he was pronounced dead. The devastated mother recalls how active Bubele was.
“I called him cuddles because like his name, he was very warm-hearted and liked hugs and kisses,” said Mafenuka.
“He had an appetite for food and playing of course,” she said.
Mafenuka, who is studying IT, explained how she had big plans for the children, but now she is taking it one day at a time, while remembering not to neglect her other three children.
“I was looking forward to watching them grow up together, sharing the brotherhood and sibling bond,” said the devastated mom.
“I haven’t come to terms with his passing, I still feel like I will just see him crawling from the bedroom and smiling at me,” Mafenuka said.
She said Bungcwele, Buchule and Bunono were restless leading up to the burial of Bubele.
“After Bubele’s burial they seemed okay, I guess that’s the closure they needed,” said Mafenuka.
According to Mafenuka, the post-mortem confirmed that Bubele’s sudden death was caused by diarrhoea.