Former councillor remains positive after losing elections
DIEPSLOOT - The DA's losing candidate in Diepsloot, Refilwe Mathebula, is continuing with community work despite failing to hold onto Ward 95.
The DA activist is passionately attending to two community challenges at the moment.
She is in the process of escalating Patrick Nkqayi’s eviction case to the Lawyer Society of South Africa after his lawyer allegedly failed to help him, despite receiving payments for legal services. Nkqayi and his family were evicted from their home a few days before Mandela Day after his former girlfriend sold his RDP house behind his back in murky circumstances.
The former councillor is also at the forefront in drumming up donations for an indigent family whose shack and household property were destroyed last week when a speeding motorist rammed into their home. “I will continue serving my community, and losing elections will not stop me from continuing with the work that I have always been doing in Diepsloot,” said Mathebula.
She added that she does not need a position in order to help. Mathebula made headlines this year for good reasons which included burying the poor, championing service delivery issues and raising challenges faced by her community.
A day after losing to the ANC’s Matle Kate Mphahlele, Mathebula called Fourways Review to request contact details for the Law Society of South Africa. “Patrick is still outside, no court date has been set yet and his lawyer promised to meet him on 23 August. We have no option now except to approach the Law society of South Africa,” she said.
She added that she was not bitter with Diepsloot people for voting ANC. Instead, the DA woman said she was prepared to work with anyone to better the lives of people of Diepsloot.
She denied that she was already preparing for the next elections. “I am not even certain if I will stand in the next elections. To me, it’s about helping people, and not positions. I was volunteering before I even became a councillor. I never anticipated to be a councillor when I started working for the community of Diepsloot,” said the mother of two.
She also revealed that she was surprised when the DA asked her to be the party’s PR councillor in Diepsloot. The diminutive woman is, however, reticent about revealing her future plans.
