Former EFF secretary-general Godrich Gardee’s daughter, Hillary, will be laid to rest in Kamagugu outside Mbombela, Mpumalanga on Saturday.
The 28-year-old went missing on April 28. She was in the company of a three-year-old when she vanished from the Nelspruit CBD. The toddler was later safely reunited with the family.
Five days later, Hillary’s body was found dumped in an open veld outside Nelspruit on Tuesday morning by a group of people heading to work. She had sustained a gunshot wound to the head.
Family and EFF spokesperson Sinawo Thambo appealed to the public to respect the Gardee family during this difficult time. “Please let’s not make a spectacle around Hillary’s funeral. Let’s make sure we give her a dignified send-off and respect the family,” said Thambo.
“This information [head injury] came out of a post-mortem autopsy. The bullet was removed from the back of Hillary’s head. That is how we were able to know she was shot in the head.
“The assumption was that she had wounds on her head because she was beaten. We are thankful that the forensic team revealed this to us because we might have buried Hillary with a bullet.”
Thambo said the EFF and the family hoped the police could redeem themselves and find the perpetrators.
To read more political news and views, click here.
Follow @SundayWorldZA on Twitter and @sundayworldza on Instagram, or like our Facebook Page, Sunday World, by clicking here for the latest breaking news in South Africa. To Subscribe to Sunday World, click here.
