Former Miss South Africa, Bokang Montjane-Tshabalala, said the country has lost its moral fibre, and action must be taken to put a stop to the rising number of gender-based violence cases.
Bokang, the wife to ex-Kaizer Chiefs and Bafana Bafana star, Siphiwe Tshabalala, said the cases of gender-based violence and brutal killing of young women reported recently cannot go unchallenged. She referred to the murder of eight-months-pregnant Soweto resident Tshego Pule in particular.
The suspected murderer, Muzikayise Malephane, 31, had since been arrested and made a brief appearance in the Roodepoort Magistrates’ Court.
Addressing residents of Ward 33 Mogale City Plot 89 Nooitgedacht in Muldersdrift, the couple were donating food parcels to underprivileged families and copies of Shabba’s recently launched book, Super Shabba – The African Superhero.
The couple’s charity work is done through the Siphiwe Tshabalala and Bokang Montjane Foundations, in partnership with Mogale City Local Municipality.
Bokang said the violence meted out to young women can be traced back to the way young boys are brought up. She said government cannot tackle the scourge of violence on its own, adding that the relationship between a father and his son cannot be separated from the development of the kids. “Fathers need to step up to the plate, be counted and play their part in raising the boy child. The recent violence we have seen is as a result of fathers being absent in the lives of their kids, and this impacts negatively on the upbringing and the development of the child,” Bokang added.
She briefly painted a not-so-glossy picture of how she made it against all odds to be the reigning Miss SA in 2010, the year that Shabba scored the ‘golden goal’ during the opening match of the Soccer World Cup against Mexico.
“My life is not a story of a girl who grew up in the suburbs or in town. Mine is the story about a girl from a village who didn’t need a prince to be a princess, but believed in herself and her dreams to become the Princess of Africa. Their foundations both work in youth empowerment, and in 2014 they partnered with the National Youth Development Agency to promote national health and well-being programmes. Bokang said through their foundations, they will work with various government structures to assist in nurturing young kids and develop young people.
