Cape Town - Family of Gugulethu mother of two Tania Mbalo were disappointed after the matter which has been on the Bellville Magistrate’s Court roll since July suffered yet another delay.
Andisile Moni is charged with the murder of his 31-year-old ex-girlfriend, the mother of his child. Mbalo’s bruised body was discovered in a blue recycling bag in an open field in Delft on June 27. Moni is the father of one of Mbalo’s two children, aged 3 and 5.
Moni, who appeared in a blue denim jacket and jeans yesterday, has been in custody since July. At his first appearance, he abandoned his bail but told the court through his lawyer in September that he intended to bring a bail application.
When the magistrate asked whether he had paid his legal fees, he said yes, but his lawyer failed to pitch up in court.
The State prosecutor opted for a remand to December 6 as they await post-mortem and toxicology reports. Outside court, Mbalo’s cousin Vuyiseka Mbalo said they were disappointed.
“The last time we were here, we were hoping there would at least be a verdict as to whether he gets bail or not, but now it’s as if it’s being pushed back this whole time and it is draining for us as the family. We won’t give up, we’ll still come here, we’ll come again for the next appearance, even if there is another delay, we’ll come again,” Mbalo said.
She said the family had been informed that the matter would be transferred to the high court.
Gugulethu community members gathered outside court yesterday as they have done since the start of the case to raise awareness on gender-based violence.
Family friend and community member Nthabiseng Ntuli said: “We are here supporting the family because Tania was young and we are still young, so we are supporting another youth.”
She said what happened to Mbalo was a tragedy.
“Tania trusted the guy, he was the father of the child and she probably never thought her boyfriend could do this to her. This creates fear in us as women, because we are even afraid to get into relationships, not knowing what our partners think about us,” Ntuli said.