JOHANNESBURG - The high court in Johannesburg has heard that Thembi Letlape had intended to leave the home she shared with her boyfriend.
READ: Convicted killer, Sibusiso Zitha calls pastor to mitigate sentence
Before she could, Thembi Letlape's partner, Sibusiso Zitha, stabbed her to death in May last year.
Zitha is now asking for forgiveness from the family.
Thembi's father, Dr Kgosi Letlape, says forgiveness is not a priority as they continue to try and pick up the pieces.
Convicted murderer Sibusiso Zitha took to the stand to explain, in his own words, what happened the night he killed his partner, Thembi Letlape.
He says arguments were common in the relationship, but something was different the evening of 30 May when he stabbed the 38-year-old multiple times.
Zitha admitted that he had introduced Letlape to drugs, but clarified that she was not an addict.
The man has asked for forgiveness from the family he acknowledges took him in as one of their own.
Zitha said, in court, "I was wrong, I erred, I must pay for it, I admit to that. Whatever judgment the court gives me, I hope it brings some kind of closure."
"l sorry I miss my words, closure, I don’t know that anything can, that’s one of the reasons I took the stand, I wanted you to hear from me, and not from a statement or lawyer, I wanted you to hear it from me, that I am sorry. Please forgive me.”
Dr Letlape said, "For me, it’s about making women safe in their homes with people they love."
"I don’t have the luxury of whining about forgiveness when the county I live in has become a killing field for women, and as a man, that’s what I have to contend with. I accepted him as a son, but I ask myself as a father, what type of boys are we raising? So, where I am, it’s not about the issue of forgiveness.”
The family has also been left with the guilt of wondering if they did enough to save their daughter when they noticed signs of trouble.
Dr Letlape said, "I sit and say she died for love…we saw the signs and ask what more could we have done."
"We were not happy with the situation, that’s why we asked her to come back home."
"The question that haunts me is had she come to the realisation that something was wrong, that’s why her life was taken."
The court also heard that on the day she was killed, Themba had intended to move out of the house she shared with Zitha.
Zitha's own pastor was brought in for mitigation of sentence and asked not to be recorded.
The prison minister acknowledged that Zitha had a slight temper and was stubborn, but hadn't known him to fight unless it had to do with his family.
He added that from his assessment, Zitha had shown remorse at what he'd done and its impact on the Letlape family.
The case continues.