Gauteng Decuplets: Aunt says babies and mother remain in hospital care

The aunt of the “Tembisa Ten” decuplets has said that the babies and their mother are under hospital care recovering after their birth, with the infants said to be in incubators “fighting for their lives”. 

TimesLIVE said on Thursday that the aunt had told them that the issue is sensitive and that is why no confirmation of the births has been forthcoming. The Gauteng Provincial Government, as well as national government, have said that no records of the births can be traced. 

Decuplets ‘fighting for their lives’ 

Speaking to TimesLIVE at the family’s home in Tembisa, Gauteng, the aunt said that because the decuplets were born so prematurely, they remain under observation with the mother still recovering after the potentially record-breaking labour she endured. 

“The babies were born and are still in incubators fighting for their lives,” she said. “They came at 29-weeks; the mother is still weak. And as a black family we want to protect them. This is a sensitive issue.”

The aunt said that the mother is in good spirits, and urged the public to be patient while they prepare to reveal the babies to the world. 

“At the end of the day it’s our responsibility. Even though people are starting to doubt about the babies, they were born. She [the mother] is a bubbly and strong person, so she probably doesn’t want people seeing her in pain,” she said.

“People are hunting them [the babies] down. They are even checking for their registrations with home affairs. We are hoping they make it.”

Gauteng government finds no record of births  

The Gauteng Provincial Government said on Wednesday evening in a statement that despite their best efforts, they can’t track down the hospital where the babies where born.

“Following reports from the Independent Media group about a Gauteng woman having given birth to decuplets on Monday, 07 June 2021, the Gauteng Provincial Government conducted a thorough check with all hospitals in the province to establish the veracity or otherwise of the report,” they said. 

“None of the hospitals in the province, public and private, have any records of such a delivery in their facilities.”