Cape Town – Minister of Sport, Arts, and Culture Gayton McKenzie has called on Kelly Smith, the mother of missing six-year-old Joshlin Smith, to confess to authorities about her daughter’s disappearance.
Joshlin went missing last year in Saldanha Bay, prompting an extensive search.
Kelly, her boyfriend Jacquen Appollis, and their friend Steveno van Rhyn were arrested on charges of kidnapping and human trafficking.
Despite pleading not guilty, McKenzie urged Kelly to tell the truth, speculating that drug abuse may have played a role in the incident.
“The difference is not jail food but the absence of drugs in her body. I sincerely hope that the goodness that we are all born with shall return also, she must confess and share the truth with the authorities regarding her daughter Joshlin,” McKenzie wrote in a Facebook post on Monday.
“If drugs don’t kill you physically it kills who you were, I hope as the drugs leave, the truth shall enter her life again. Kelly praat tog net die waarheid. (Kelly, please tell the truth)
The trial has drawn significant community attention, with around 200 people attending the proceedings.
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Compiled by Betha Madhomu
