On National Women’s Day, people from across South Africa gathered at the Shree Marieammen Temple in Mount Edgecombe for the unveiling of a bust in memory of slain Gauteng health official Babita Deokaran.

The ceremony, held on the grounds where Deokaran once walked, learned and worshipped, was described as an act of “solemn, heartbreaking remembrance” and a call to protect whistleblowers who stand against corruption.

On August 23, 2021, Babita Deokaran, a hardworking single mother and chief accountant at the Gauteng Department of Health, was shot and killed outside her home in Mondeor, Joburg south.

WATCH: Whistleblower Babita Deokaran’s murder trial begins

Babita became a whistleblower against corruption in the SA government, and for standing up against corruption, she paid the price with her life.

Delivering an address, Neeshan Balton urged those present not to let the monument replace the woman.

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On National Women’s Day, people from across South Africa gathered at the Shree Marieammen Temple in Mount Edgecombe for the unveiling of a bust in memory of slain Gauteng health official Babita Deokaran. Full story on southerncourier.co.za

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“We unveil a bust of Babita Deokaran on the very grounds where she once walked, learned, worshipped, and truly belonged. In doing so, we bring her story home. But as we look upon this bronze, please, let us not allow the monument to replace the woman,” Balton said.

ALSO READ: Deokaran family keeps Babita’s legacy alive nearly 5 years after her murder

He remembered Deokaran as “a deeply devoted mother, a loyal public servant, and a woman whose fierce integrity could never be bought, bullied, or buried.”

Time for silence is over

Balton read some messages that Babita had sent him before her death.

Babita reminded Balton of her service in the health sector, including two terms as a trustee at the Nelson Mandela Children’s Hospital alongside Graça Machel, the late Zindzi Mandela and former Minister Tito Mboweni.

“I always maintain high levels of integrity, and therefore I am seen as a threat,” she wrote.

“The time for silence is over,” said Babita.

Balton said the bust must serve as more than a memorial.

“This bust must stand as an unyielding, permanent roadblock to the corrupt. It must serve as a line in the sand,” he said.

“Let it ignite an uncompromising fury in every public servant who walks past it, demanding protection for whistleblowers before they are exposed, and demanding prosecutions that rip through the gunmen to grab the planners, the paymasters, and the political protectors who think they can hide.”

He concluded: “Babita, your shift is over, but we are taking over the watch. We will scream your name in the halls of power. We will weaponise your legacy against the mafia state, and we refuse to let the truth you carried be buried with you. The time for silence is over. Let’s clean up our government, and let’s finish what Babita started.”

WATCH: Babita Deokaran’s murderers get 6 to 22 years imprisonment