Pumza Fihlani

Pumza Fihlani

After more than a year of tears and sleepless nights, the Gauteng government is dragging its feet instead of rushing to help Nobuhle Ndlebe bury her twin babies.

This was illustrated yesterday when Sowetan again approached the Gauteng Department of Health about the long-awaited DNA test results that are central to Ndlebe's anguish.

Ndlebe still cannot bury - 443 days after they died - her twin boys, who were born prematurely and died shortly after their birth, because of Natalspruit Hospital's inefficiency.

Ndlebe gave birth to twin boys Lindokhule and Lindelani in October last year.

Ndlebe's hell began after the Natalspruit Hospital mistakenly gave one of Ndlebe's twins, Lindokuhle, to a family from KwaZulu-Natal.

The corspe was buried in Bergville in June. After more waiting the corpse was finally exhumed in October but Ndlebe still does not have her baby.

Pressed for answers, department spokesman Howard Ndaba said yesterday: "The Gauteng Department of Health is regretful of the extremely long delay in processing the DNA testing on the baby assumed to be the child of Mrs Ndlebe.

"The laboratory to which the exhumed tissues was submitted for DNA testing informed the department that the tissues were not suitable for testing by the methods used in their laboratory"

The department tried to pass the buck by quickly pointing out that the samples were now with the SAPS Forensic Laboratory, implying that they were responsible for the delay.

"More tissue has been submitted to the SAPS Forensic Laboratory, which uses a different technique."

Asked when the results would be ready, Ndaba said: "We cannot say when the results would be ready. We are also unable to reach the person we have been communicating with at the laboratory."

Ndaba later called Sowetan and said the results will be ready this week. But none of this has been communicated to Ndlebe.