Johannesburg – Revered South African rapper, AKA, along with close friends and family, gathered earlier today at the Durban International Conference Centre to pay their final respects to Nelli Tembe.
It is believed that Tembe fell to her death from a skyscraper in Cape Town this past Sunday, with the tragic loss being labelled as a suicide.
However, according to a letter from Nelli’s father that was read at her memorial at the Durban International Conference Centre, it is reported that her father doesn’t believe that his daughter committed suicide.
The letter from Moses Tembe, was read out by businessman Sandile Zungu.
“As Anele’s father, I categorically state that Anele was neither suicidal nor did she commit suicide. We must as a matter of priority deal with the scourge that bedevils our youth. Alcohol which is overused and drugs. Fellow South Africans we better wake up and smell the coffee, we have a serious problem with substance abuse,” the letter read.
Also read: Sony Music expresses condolences to AKA and Nellie Tembe’s families
“I cannot allow an unfortunate narrative to go unchallenged, a narrative that irks me to no end, that is ‘Anele was chronically suicidal’. All I can say is, until Anele turned 21, not a single member of her family, my family would have associated her with suicide. I knew Kiernan loved my daughter but their companionship needed more than love. It had to be premised and embedded on a Godly foundation,” the letter from Moses further stated.
“Anele made me happy as a father, very happy. Anele was feisty, strong-willed some might say. She was single-minded in her pursuits, what others would uncritically call stubborn. Anele never minced her words, an attribute that would perturb her siblings, which she balanced by giving her absolute best to those around her.
Also read: Tembe and Forbes families ask for privacy after Nelli’s death
“In my deepest desire that my girl live to be who she wanted to be, I nurtured these Anele traits. For I truly believed that she had needed guidance rather than repression, persuasion rather than brute force,” he further said.
Also read: AKA‘s fiancée, Nelli Tembe, has committed suicide
Take from this as it is, not what you want to hear! This has no hidden meaning
/Anele Tembe/ /Kiernan/ pic.twitter.com/B064GAWIQM— Kyla Manju (@kyla_szmanju) April 16, 2021
💔😭 Kiernan will never be the same! I can only imagine what his going through. Rest In Peace Anele 🕊#Aka #aneletembe #anele pic.twitter.com/TiBHT59OEN
— Azania’s Momma🐻 (@Amycarls02) April 16, 2021
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