'I recognise you.' Baleka gives the matrimonial nod to her 'Ben10'

25 September 2016 - 02:00 By BABALO NDENZE
subscribe Just R20 for the first month. Support independent journalism by subscribing to our digital news package.
Subscribe now

It took National Assembly Speaker Baleka Mbete 10 years to find true love again.

This love could not have come from a better source than a fellow "cadre of the movement".

Mbete, who celebrated her 67th birthday yesterday, tied the knot with her "Ben10" - Bloemfontein businessman Nape Khomo - in a traditional ceremony in Mqanduli, Eastern Cape, where the bride's parents were laid to rest.

  •  

About 100 guests, including Defence Minister Nosiviwe Mapisa-Nqakula and husband Charles Nqakula, attended the wedding ceremony.

Mbete wore a peach and silver traditional outfit and Khomo kept it simple with a grey suit.

It was a joyous celebration all round, with villagers ululating and Mbete's family giving the union their blessing.

Nkuli Kgositsile, Mbete's daughter, said she was "very happy for her . I'm an adult and having to marry my mom is kind of weird. But I am excited."

 

Mphakama Mbete, Mbete's younger brother and family spokesman, said he felt good about his sister's nuptials.

"I am happy for her. We are close siblings," he said.

He has been "getting along very well" with his new brother-in-law for the past five years.

A day before she said her "I do's", the fierce parliament boss gave the Sunday Times a rare peek into her personal life, thousands of kilometres from the National Assembly.

Speaking from the family homestead on Friday, the newlyweds recalled how they met in Bloemfontein five years ago, a few months before the City of Roses hosted the ANC's centenary celebrations.

"By the time we met, I was long past that [previous] marriage. I actually hadn't been in a relationship for 10 years when I met this comrade," said Mbete, who was married to Keorapetse Kgositsile for 14 years before divorcing in 1992.

"Ten years is a lifetime, yes. I guess it's a matter for psychologists. Maybe it was partly a matter of personal policy.

"Secondly it's a matter as to how, as a human being, even though it might not be conscious at the time, you protect yourself," said Mbete.

full_story_image_vleft1

Khomo said that although he was a member of the ANC, he was not active in politics.

Mbete wouldn't disclose Khomo's age, except to say that he is 10 years younger than her, leading to Nkuli quipping that her mother had found herself a "Ben10".

Khomo is a Bloemfontein businessman with interests in various sectors, including energy, construction, communications, media, engineering and real estate.

He also owns various properties in the City of Roses, including one in Woodlands Hills Wildlife Estate, an exclusive estate where houses cost as much as R7-million and which counts top Free State politicians and judges among its residents.

Woodlands residents say Mbete is a regular.

block_quotes_start Being Africans, it is not normal for two people to remain together without commitment to one another. Traditionally it's not right block_quotes_end

Mbete revealed that Khomo had provided her with comfort after one of the many hectic days presiding over a chaotic National Assembly.

Khomo's "firm and established" political credentials also helped the relationship.

"The good thing is: here are two ANC cadres that ... [contributed] in the struggle, and then get to meet.

"We [took] ... our time falling deeper and deeper in love."

The wedding ceremony had to take place in Mqanduli, where her parents are laid to rest, because of the traditional nature of lobola, which came in the form of 11 cows, 10 of which are pregnant, she said.

"We always wished it could just be a cosy family matter. I grew up in Durban, but my parents are lying here.

"And I think what also determined it [the location] was the form of lobola.

"When he said that it would be live cattle coming over to my family, then it couldn't be in Joburg.

full_story_image_vright2

"To deliver live cattle in Joburg is not practical. It immediately meant, within three weeks, changing our thinking and settling for the right venue, which is the seat of the spirit of the family."

Khomo said living together as just life partners was not good enough for him.

"You must remember that we are Africans. And, being Africans, it is not normal for two people to remain together without commitment to one another. Traditionally it's not right," said Khomo.

But that was not his main reason for proposing.

"The main reason at the end of the day is loving one another," said Khomo.

ndenzeb@timesmedia.co.za

subscribe Just R20 for the first month. Support independent journalism by subscribing to our digital news package.
Subscribe now