Hundreds of mourners braved the chilly weather on Saturday to pay their last respects to the late Ndivhudzannyi Simson Negoma, a highly respected retired senior manager at the Department of Home Affairs.
Negoma, who worked at the department for 41 years before retiring in April 2018, passed away at his home in Dzimauli Tshibvumo on Saturday, 3 June, at the age of 70. He was laid to rest at Dzimauli.
Mr Zamba Maluleke, a current senior manager at the Department of Home Affairs, told the mourners that Negoma's loyalty and hard work were the main reasons why his colleagues still remembered him years after his retirement. "It is very rare that one sees an employer paying tribute at someone's funeral who had retired years ago. However, we felt it would be unjust for us not to be part of this send-off because the deceased had been such a useful asset to us during his time at the department. Even in his retirement, we used to call him for advice, and he would assist us because he was a knowledgeable person whose experience could not be underrated."
The deceased's daughter, Ms Dakalo Negoma, who is a senior manager at the South African Revenue Services (SARS), said believing that her loving father was gone was hard. "Daddy was a responsible person who strived to provide us with a better future. We cannot imagine how life would be without him because he was our pillar of strength. His departure caught us by surprise because he had just returned from hospital, and he looked strong and recovering. Despite the pain that we feel, we thank God for giving us a wonderful father who loved us until his last day on earth," she said.
Negoma is survived by his two wives, Florah and Takalani, children and grandchildren.