Africa says goodbye to Actress and songbird

News and opinions about the untimely death of Lesego Motsepe, famously known as Letti Matabane, spread like wild fire on the social network this week.

Ms Motsepe was known for her role in the widely popular South African Isidingo, soap opera that became a must watch thirty minutes programme that still airs on ITV, at 7.30pm, from Monday to Friday.

Lesego, who played Letti Matabane, the daughter to Agnes Matabane (Keketso Semoko) and Zebedee Matabane (Don Mlangeni) and a brother to Parsons Matabane (Tshepo Maseko) died on Monday in her Randburg home.

Lesego, who died at the age of 39, was a popular South African personality and she will be fondly remembered for her role of bonding the Matabane family, through thick and thin.     

Immediately after the news of her death, condolences began pouring in from friends and fans.

African National Congress (ANC) has expressed shock and sadness after learning of Lesego’s sudden death.

“Lesego... was a courageous young woman with whom many of us were privileged to interact with in her many different and courageous guises,” ANC spokesperson Jackson Mthembu said in a statement.

“South Africa is much poorer for having lost such a bright star which shone amongst us,” Mthembu said.

The 39 year-old died on Monday morning. Her body was discovered by her brother Moemise Motsepe around 11:am at her home in Randburg, the family said in a statement.

Motsepe was declared dead at 1:pm by paramedics. She died of natural causes.

Being part of the cast from 1998 to 2008, Motsepe will be greatly remembered for having announced her HIV-positive status on World Aids day in 2011, and became an Aids ambassador.

“She was also an unrelenting crusader in the fight against HIV/Aids,” Mthembu added.

Motsepe had participated in a live Twitter interview, hosted by the ANC, in which she openly discussed coping with the disease and empowered many people.

“Her last words during our social media live chat was ‘When you choose to live, you empower yourself, no matter what the challenges may be when living with any disease’,” Mthembu said.

“We hope her determination and her life story will continue to strengthen and comfort all those whose lives have been touched by this daughter of the soil.”

In 2012, Letti said she would no longer be taking her antiretrovirals and instead focus on living a healthy lifestyle, something she was able to do.

One of her last high-profile roles was to portray songbird Brenda Fassie on stage. She also told YOU magazine in an interview that she wanted to “travel across Africa and teach acting in different places”.

If she hadn’t become an actress, she said, she would have become a lawyer or a psychologist. “It’s a sad day; I’m in tears. Lesego was my colleague and friend for over the decade,” says actress Hlubi Mboya.  Hlubi played Lesego’s sister-in-law in Isidingo.

“She was very vocal about not being on ARVs. I feel like this misfortune could have been prolonged, if only she had made a different decision. Condolences to the family. She (Lesego) was a sweetheart, a song bird with a gracious heart.”

Motsepe is survived by her mother Ivy Skhosana, brothers Moemise and Andile Skhosana, and nieces and nephews.