The Health and Social Development MMC Eunice Mgcina has shared her outrage over the brutal murder of a local nurse.
Dorcas Rathokana was allegedly doused with paraffin and set alight by her boyfriend at her home in Ivory Park on 5 August.
Mgcina, accompanied by MMC for Community Development Margaret Arnolds, visited the home of the late Rathokana on 18 August after she succumbed to burn wounds.
Mgcina said that they had to pledge their support to the family and to voice their outrage at the brutal manner in which Rathokana’s life was taken.
“As the City of Joburg’s leadership we were disturbed to learn about this incident and we are particularly outraged that it happened while we are celebrating Women’s Month.
“The City’s Social Development Unit is always on hand to offer psycho-social assistance to the family. We understand the difficulty that they might be going through therefore our social workers are available to offer emotional support in their journey to healing.”
Mgcina added that the City has just launched a gender-based violence and substance abuse crisis toll-free line and urged anyone who is in need of intervention to reach out for help.
“We also encourage communities and family members to report incidents of gender-based violence to the police and to work together with law enforcement agencies to bring perpetrators of GBV to book.
Rathokana’s niece, Thulisile Mabuza, said that on the day of the incident she got a call from the neighbours, at around 2am whilst at home, alerting her of an accident at her uncle’s home.
She explained that she asked one of her neighbours to accompany her. She arrived at Rathokana’s home and found her laying on the bed. “I could not even talk to her. I then rushed outside and cried because I was startled at how she looked.”
The Ivory Park Police Station confirmed that Rathokana and her boyfriend had an argument on 5 August, whereby the boyfriend allegedly accused the victim of seeing one of her tenants.
According to the police station spokesperson Captain Bernard Matimulane, the suspect apparently assaulted the victim until they were separated by people nearby. After going to sleep later that night, people heard the victim screaming and yelling that she has been burnt with paraffin, allegedly at the hands of her boyfriend.
“The suspect was arrested for murder and has appeared in the Tembisa Magistrates’ Court. The case was postponed for the following week.”
Rathokana was laid to rest on 22 August at the Mfihlweni Cemetery, in Tembisa. The City of Johannesburg, along with Doves funeral parlour, offered burial assistance to the late front-line worker’s family.
