Suspect in court for death of intern doctor 'showed no remorse': MEC

Limpopo health MEC Dr Phophi Ramathuba said the man arrested in connection with the death of an intern doctor at a Polokwane hospital did not show remorse when he appeared in court on Wednesday.

Shongile Nkhwashu, 24, was found dead in her locked room at Mankweng Hospital, east of Polokwane, on Sunday.

Ntiyiso Xilumani, 25, who is alleged to be her boyfriend, appeared in the Mankweng magistrate's court on Wednesday in connection with her murder.  

He told a packed courtroom that he would enlist the services of the Legal Aid Board as he did not have money to hire a private lawyer, reported the Sowetan.

"He was just walking freely, as if he has not done anything wrong. I did not expect to see somebody walk in [court] the way he did," Ramathuba told members of the community outside court, in a video clip shared by her department.

"This doctor's life was just taken away ... Her future was bright. She was so young, for goodness' sake. She did not deserve to die," Ramathuba told the SABC before entering the court.

The department will hold a memorial service for Nkhwashu on Thursday at Mankweng Hospital. Her funeral will take place in Giyani on Saturday. 

Xilumani is due to appear in court again on January 31.