Mia Muofhe - gone but not forgotten

A year has passed since the mysterious death of Lindelani Nengovhela, popularly known as Mia Muofhe on social-media platforms, but her memory lives on in the hearts of her family and friends.

On 28 January 2023, people from around the country who knew her woke up to the sad news of her death, shortly after she had withdrawn a domestic abuse charge she had laid against her husband, local comedian Livhuwani Madadzhe. The couple had thrown a big celebration party at their home, where large quantities of liquor were reportedly consumed. The next day, her body was found in a water-filled trench at their house. Madadzhe, better known as SABC Livhu, was charged with her murder that same day. After a spell in prison, he was released on R50,000 bail and has made several court appearances since.

In Nengovhela’s memory, her sister, Sylvia Nengovhela, posted on her Facebook page, expressing the pain the family has been going through since her death. “Namusi o fhedza nwaha murathu wanga o tuwa fhano shangoni (It is today a year since my sister departed from this world). Hu tou vha vhoiwe vhanwe ni nga si zwi pfesese ngauri (It is just that others will not understand). She didn’t just die but was murdered. She was healthy yes but emotionally drained. And I dedicated the song by Nadia The Vocalist-Bono Langa to her in heaven, just don’t rest till justice is done,” (sic) she wrote.

Sylvia said the family would always remember her sister, especially the day she had been torn from this world, which would be engraved in their hearts forever. “The case is dragging its feet, and we feel like we are being let down by the justice system. It is a year now and nothing is happening. The support we used to get from the community is no more and it is like this case will just collapse. To the community, we still need that support; it kept us strong as a family. The more it is delayed, the more we feel the pain. We want closure in this matter.”

She said things had been very hard on all of them. “We are dealing with her murder case, having to go up and down to the courts seeking the custody of her children. We are not saying the children must not see their father, but we feel they will not be taken care of if he takes them away,” she said.

Livhuwani Madadzhe is due to appear in court again on 1 March.

Date:08 February 2024

By: Elmon Tshikhudo

Elmon Tshikhudo started off as a photographer. He developed an interest in writing and started submitting articles to local as well as national publications. He became part of the Limpopo Mirror family in 2005 and was a permanent part of the news team until 2019.

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