Pretoria - Mpumalanga Premier David Mabuza is in Pretoria to accompany 18 families as they receive the mortal remains of their loved ones who died in Nigeria two months ago.
Premier Mabuza is joined by Social Development MEC Nomsa Mtsweni and senior government officials.
Initially reports indicated that the number of people from Mpumalanga who died in the tragedy stood at 24. However, 18 have been positively identified.
The provincial government has been assisting the families by providing counseling and food on a weekly basis.
This weekend the families were transported to Pretoria where the bodies arrived at Waterkloof Air Base this morning and a formal reception is to be held.
This assistance will be extended to all the families until the remains are buried.
After the formal reception, the bodies will be transported to Themba Hospital, in Mbombela overnight. They will remain the same specialised trucks in which they were loaded in Nigeria and repatriated to Pretoria.
Provincial memorial service
A provincial memorial service will be held at the Provincial Disaster Management Centre in Mbombela on the R40 Road on Monday at 11am.
The service will be attended by family members and friends as well as government officials only.
After the service, the provincial government will assist the families with specialised government pathology vehicles to transport the remains to their nearest government hospitals.
The families will collect the bodies of their loved ones from these government mortuaries for burial.
The Provincial Government has urged families not to open the sealed covers due to the nature of the incident and the state of decomposition. They are further advised to bury their loved ones as quickly as possible.
Of the 84 people who died when a guesthouse collapsed in Lagos on 12 September, a large number were from Mpumalanga and the Eastern Cape.
From Ehlanzeni District, four people were from Nkomazi municipality, two were from Umjindi, eight were from Mbombela and five were from Bushbuckridge municipality.
In Gert Sibande District, two were from Chief Albert Luthuli, one was from Msukaligwa and one from Lekwa.
In Nkangala District, one of the victims were from the Steve Tshwete municipality.
“We would like to extend our appreciation of the efforts by our national government in assisting the families by returning the remains of their loved one so that they can get closure after enduring two months of uncertainty and pain.
“We are aware that there are those who are still awaiting the results of the process of identification of the bodies in Nigeria. We will continue to pray with them and hope that they will receive the remains of their loved ones so that they can also get closure,” said Premier Mabuza. – SAnews.gov.za
