Brother reunites with family 27-years after he went missing
The Zulu family in Tembisa finally saw the light on November 27 when they were reunited with their bother - Vusi Zulu (50) who went missing in the early 1990s.
Vusi, who used to stay in Vosloorus, was last seen by his late aunt Sheila Zulu in 1990 when he went to pay her a visit in Tembisa. During that visit Vusi left his picture with Sheila which became useful later when they were searching for him.
On November 22, Ndoda Zulu (44) a younger brother of Vusi wrote to Kathorus MAIL, pleading to help him in his search for the brother he has never met.
He said he was told by Sheila in 1991 – after the death of their father – that he had an older brother in Vosloorus.
“I have been looking for him ever since,” he said.
“When we visited Capt Piet Rossouw from Vosloorus Police Station, he told us about Aaron Damane the Kathorus MAIL reporter. We contacted him and he responded by writing an article which was published on the newspaper’s social media, website and in its November 22 issue.
“Since the story was published, we have been receiving calls from people who know Vusi. Even his sons and the people he works with at Afrox in Germiston saw the story and gave us a call. Thanks to Kathorus MAIL and Aaron Damane for going the extra mile to help us find our brother,” said Ndoda.
Ndoda said that on Friday, November 24 they had a meeting with Vusi’s sons (Thulani Zulu and Lerato Zulu who are staying in Edenvale and Brakpan) to discuss the day on which they would go and meet with Vusi.
Vusi told Kathorus MAIL life was difficult knowing he had younger siblings whose whereabouts he did not know.
He said life was not easy because he had horrible dreams about his siblings.
“I always saw them in my dreams. I knew that my ancestors were trying to warn me that my siblings were trying to find me. The sad thing is that the ancestors never revealed where my family members were,” laments Vusi who used to be a member of MK before it was dissolved in 1994.
He said he has been to Malawi to follow his calling of being a prophet.
“I have a calling of being a prophet. I can tell and solve people’s problems by just looking at their faces. I have been to Malawi for a couple of months to complete my training there. To complete such training you need your family by your side. I am glad that I have found them,” he said.
He explained the feeling of joy after meeting his siblings.
“I have never been happier in my life. It was like I have known them for a long time but I was only seeing them for the first time. The only person I know is my late aunt (Sheila) whom I went to see in Tembisa in 1990,” he said.
Lerato Zulu (34) an older son of Vusi said: “This December will be different.
“Now that we have met I am sure we will spend this December together as a family. As Africans we have a culture that connects us with family. There were so many things that we needed to do but were impossible because we had no connection with family. Now that we have met we will be able to solve those problems together,” Lerato added.
He thanked Kathorus MAIL for using its resources to find their father.
“I know there are more important stories that you could have published, but you opted to reserve that space for the story about my missing father. Thank you Kathorus MAIL,” he said.
Thulane Zulu, a younger son of Vusi, said he took his mother’s surname because there had been no connection with his father. “Now that I have met my family I am considering changing to my father’s surname (Zulu),” said Thulane.
He said changing his surname to ‘Zulu’ will help his children to know their true identity. “It is important especially now that I am about to finish paying lobolo for a bride – I will do it using my right surname,” he said.
