She claims she was infected with HIV by the late Kwaito artist, Tebogo 'Zombo' Ndlovu who died in 2008 following illnesses related to HIV. Lebo Motsumi came out about ten years ago, to name the man that infected her with HIV when she was just a teenager, not to shame him but to share her story.

SPEAKING UP AGAIN

Lebo is speaking up again about the matter as she is part of the #Beyond Silence campaign taking place during the 16 Days of Activism against Gender-Based Women and Children. "I wanted to be part of the campaign as I see what many young girls are going through. They think if someone is rich, affluent, and popular, they are immune to falling ill. No one is immune to the virus and you need to take care of yourself." When she first spoke up about the matter, she said she did not want to mention his name but she eventually did. "Before the story was published, I asked Zombo's family for permission. They knew of me and I used to take vegetables to him when he was ill, so, they gave me consent,' she told ZiMoja.

CONTRACTING HIV 

Lebo has been living with HIV since she was a teenager. "I was 17, my friend and I went to a club to watch a performance by Chomee. During the performance, I spotted Tebogo Ndlovu (Zombo), and he was winking at me. He had lost a lot of weight. Well, people lose weight, so It wasn't a big deal. He approached me and asked for my numbers, and I gave them to him. We hugged,and he left the club.' she said, adding that when growing up, she always wanted to be famous,and saw this as her ticket to fame. "All I could think about were headlines in different newspapers, magazines, etc. 'Lebo Motsumi pregnant with Zombo's child' Yeah, that's how desperate I was," she says. "We spoke on the phone for a couple of days and planned to meet, he came to my house cause I was living alone at the time. We had unprotected sex and I didn't mind cause I had a plan," Lebogang adds. She says little did she know, he also had his plan, which was to infect her with HIV on purpose. "This relationship was not one built on love. I wanted fame,and he wanted to infect me," she says. "We had sex everywhere and anywhere, mostly in his white golf 1. I remember the wife would call me to leave him alone, did I listen? Nah, I was on a mission. To date, I still feel she was warning me, but at the time, I didn't care. I wanted the fame." Months later, Lebo says he got ill and was admitted to Sunninghill Hospital and they told her he had TB. "I still made nothing out of it and when he recovered, we continued having sex," she says. "I would even feed his drug addiction with my school fees money."

NO ONE IS IMMUNE

He then reached out and asked her to watch a music show on SABC1. "I think it's called "Liveamp" now. He appeared on the show sitting in a wheelchair. He then disclosed his HIV status and mentioned he went around spreading the virus 'cause he didn't want to die alone," Lebo added. "Now you probably thinking the first thing I would do is test? Nope, I thought I was immune to HIV, I just never associated myself with the virus. At 16, I was pregnant, and after giving birth to a premature baby (after trying to abort), I tested negative for HIV and Zombo was the next person I slept with after the burial of my son.Iwaslater diagnosed with HIV- it doesn't have a face and it can happen to anyone. Let's start testing regularly with our partners. Get on prep and use a condom consistently. An HIV infection is avoidable." she adds.

Late Kwaito artist, Zombo.

KIDNEY FAILURE

In 2020, Lebo learned that she had complications with her kidneys due to defaulting on her ARVs. "I have kidney failure. I have been on dialysis for two years. It's because of the defaulting,' The same year of her diagnosis, she lost her job. "I lost my job in 2020 when I got diagnosed. My job required a lot of travelling, which I couldn't do. My kidney is currently at three percent functionality. I go for dialysis three times a week. You can't tell that I'm ill. But once I don't go, I become incredibly ill.' Lebo says, her mom has been of great help. "My mom had to help put me on her medical aid. But I depend on bookings and my mom. But as a breadwinner, it's tough for her. So, I try to do MCing gigs and do some training. I have days when I am ill. I still take my ARVS, hypertension, and anemia medication.' She tells ZiMoja that she I currently doing a life coaching course and will see where that takes her.