Ayabonga Mjilo’s family says decomposition made it difficult to identify her body

DURBAN - The family of Ayabonga Mjilo, who was kidnapped and killed, allegedly by her former work manager, said they struggled with identifying her body due to decomposition.  

Mjilo went missing after attending a Christmas party on Durban’s Florida Road.  

Days later, she was found buried at the home of her former manager, Mfanafuthi Kunene, who has since been charged with her disappearance and murder.  

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Her family expressed dissatisfaction with the condition of her remains.  

Mjilo's family and friends gathered at her rural homestead in Hlokozi to bid a final farewell to her.  

Her sisters, colleagues, and other relatives could not hold back their tears as her brown coffin, covered in a pink blanket, was lowered into the grave.  

Her brother, Mthe Mjilo, said the family had challenges during the identification process.  

“The most painful part was we went to the mortuary, and we couldn’t locate the head because the body was decomposing. As you can see today, the service was very short. It is a devastating matter.”  

The brother added that the family was still struggling to come to terms with the gruesome incident.  

The KwaZulu-Natal (KZN) government says alcohol and drug abuse are one of the main reasons behind the increase in gender-based violence (GBV) cases.

Premier Thamsanqa Ntuli who was at the funeral cited drug and alcohol abuse as something that needs to be urgently addressed in curbing the GBV scourge.

“Some of the other factors that the police are mentioning is the issue of the alcohol and drug abuse, most of the incidents when people have been drinking together and other incidents that we’ve collected from other families is the issue of the drugs.” 

ALSO READ: Ntuli makes call to KZN leaders to champion campaigns against GBV