Khumbul’ ekhaya presenter Andile Gaelesiwe has lost her stepfather Dibetlela Gaelesiwe to cancer recently. Andile says she learnt about his passing while busy on a shoot.
Taking to her Instagram page she shared that she is heartbroken to have lost her ‘McGuyver’ just days after he was diagnosed with the chronic illness.
“I was on set helping a family solve their differences after which I stole a brief moment to check my phone..,Too many missed calls to count then the blow to my gut when I was told that Dad who was battling cancer that we had found out about a mere few days before, had succumbed to it [sic],” she posted.
Andile describes the man as, “God’s apology and comfort to me after my biological dad proved to be a monster.” Andile has alleged that her biological father raped her when she was a young girl.
Read more: Rape survivor Andile Gaelesiwe reveals the weapon she uses to protect herself
Dibetlela was more than just a father to her. She wrote that he was her confidant, car mechanic, handyman, driver and relationship advisor to mention a few. She fondly remembers how he would tease her about her choices when it came to men in her life.
She says he taught her never to settle when it comes to men in her life. “[He] told me I was a Queen and to take my time in finding a life partner, [he] told me never to settle,” she wrote.
She was married to sports presenter Udo Carelse and the pair divorced a few years later. Another known relationship is with former Muvhango actor Lesley Musina who confirmed their split to Move!.
In a TV interview in Tumi Morake’s show, #WTFTUMI, Andile put it on record that she has split with Lesley and has already moved on.
Read more: It long ended between Andile and Lesley
The lesson she learnt from her father were put to practice for sure.
She wrote that despite the fact that her father was not rich, he was everything.
“Papa was not a millionaire but he was everything that money can’t buy. The way he loved my mother and took care of her, defending her from family members who disapproved of her in the early years of their relationship. Even defending us the two daughters he took in when he married our mom,” she explained.
Andile shared that she has no clue how she’ll get through the loss but she “will always be a Gaelesiwe and proudly so”.
