What the stories of Bester and Matlala reveal about us

Over the past few days, I have been in deep conversation with friends about the troubling testimony of Vusumuzi “Cat” Matlala. Like many South Africans, I have been wrestling with a single haunting question: How do we stop the conveyor belt that keeps producing individuals like him and Thabo Bester?

- Sello Hatang

Vusumuzi 'Cat' Matlala's alleged involvement in the drug economy forces us to face an uncomfortable truth: How often do we assume that criminals are outsiders? / Gallo Images

(Gallo Images)

This is not a judgmental exploration. Rather, it's a plea for us to confront the uncomfortable truths. But as we do, we must centre ourselves on what truly matters: the corruption that robbed the people of Tembisa of healthcare and took the life of an honest public servant, Babita Deokaran, the woman who tried to do the right thing and paid the ultimate price.

Her young daughter will now grow up without her mother because someone decided that silence was more valuable than justice. We must not lose sight of this human cost. Behind the headlines, the testimonies, the criminal allegations, and the media frenzy stands a family shattered, a community betrayed, and a nation confronted with the consequences of its own moral erosion.

Let me remind you of the story of the late Shonisani Lethole. He died in June 2020 after tweeting to the minister of health that he had not eaten for 48 hours. His final plea was not a complaint, it was a cry for dignity. The ombud later confirmed what many feared: negligence and substandard care played a role in his passing. His story, like Deokaran's, is a reminder that behind every statistic is a human life with dreams, loved ones and a future that was meant to unfold.