"Where is my husband?" This is the question that Sibongile Tshifhango keeps asking herself with great sadness. She last saw her husband some two months ago. When others were celebrating the festivities of Easter, she was wondering where her husband could be, whether he was dead or alive.

Tshifhango of Sokoutenda, said her world came crumbling down on Monday, February 11, when her husband, Avhapfani, went for work as usual at the public works department in Nelspruit, Mpumalanga, never to return. He worked as a senior artisan. Sibongile said she woke up early on that fateful day and prepared for him to go to work and greeted him, not knowing that it was the last time she would see him. She said he usually came back at five in the afternoon but on the fateful day he never came home. "I was surprised, as he used to tell me if he was going to come back late," she said. Sibongile said they tried calling him on his mobile phone, with no luck as his phone kept ringing without being answered.

She said they then decided to call his colleagues who told them they were also trying to get hold of him as he was supposed to have visited a certain place as part of his duties, but they had failed as his phone went unanswered. "This added to my worry as I could sense that something had happened, but I just kept hoping that one day he would resurface alive. I am fast losing hope as months go by without any trace of my husband," said the sad woman.

She said after trying everything, they phoned the car tracking company who confirmed that the car had been spotted at the parking lot in Middelburg, 92km away from Nelspruit. "We went to the White River police and explained everything that had happened and a missing person docket was opened. The police also arranged with their Middelburg counterparts, who lay in wait for anybody who would come and claim the car. They informed us the following day that no one came to the car and they arranged for it to be taken to a towing company in town.

With tears streaming down her cheeks, Sibongile narrated that they checked all mortuaries and hospitals in the area, with no luck. To add insult to injury, the investigation is progressing at a snail’s pace, with no development so far. "When I phone the investigating officer, he always tells me that no new evidence has been found. What worries me most is the fact that I did my part to help the investigator by obtaining a call list that might shed light on the investigation. I also told him that there must be photos at the toll gate as the car passed through the toll gate to Middelburg, but all my efforts are in vain," she said. Sibongile said she would be very happy if somebody came with information that would lead to the whereabouts of her husband, whether dead or alive.

She said she was sadder that he left her with a one-year-old child who will grow up not knowing who her father is. "It is painful just to lose someone you love without trace and to raise a child singlehandedly," she said. Anybody who has information about the whereabouts of this man should please contact Tshifhango at: 0761501574