When a woman named Gosiame Thamara Sithole declared that she had given birth to ten babies in a single delivery, her story spread like wildfire worldwide.
Given how extraordinary the claim was, authorities launched an investigation. What they discovered stirred up debate and had everyone talking.
The astonishing report first appeared in Pretoria News in June 2021, which stated that the 37-year-old mother had given birth at Steve Biko Academic Hospital in South Africa.
Sithole and her partner, Teboho, who live in a working-class township in Gauteng province near Johannesburg, were originally told they were expecting eight babies. However, they were completely stunned when she gave birth to ten. This astonishing story quickly gained international attention, with major media outlets like the BBC covering it.
The Pretoria News even coined the nickname “Tembisa 10” for the newborns, and with so many details surrounding the case, the story initially appeared credible. At the time, there was nothing to suggest that it might not be true.
Before giving birth, Sithole reportedly spoke with Pretoria News, expressing her disbelief about the pregnancy. According to the newspaper, she said: “I am shocked by my pregnancy. It was tough at the beginning. I was sick. It was hard for me. It’s still tough but I am used to it now. I don’t feel the pain anymore, but it’s still a bit tough. I just pray for God to help me deliver all my children in a healthy condition, and for me and my children to come out alive. I would be pleased about it.”
A story of a South African woman Gosiame Sithole who allegedly gave birth to 10 babies earlier this month is not true. https://t.co/IB9WT3T33Y
— Mpasho News (@MpashoNews) June 24, 2021
However, as suspicions grew, authorities chose to investigate further—especially since the story had made global headlines and the couple had received substantial donations. A detailed inquiry revealed that no hospital, whether public or private, had any records of such a birth.
What’s more, officials stated that Sithole had never been pregnant to begin with.
“It has now been established by medical practitioners that Ms. Sithole did not give birth to any babies in recent times,” the Gauteng Provincial Government confirmed.
“It has also been established that she was not pregnant in recent times.”
The big question that came up was why anyone would make up a story about being pregnant or having more babies than they actually did. It seems that even the authorities don’t have a clear answer, especially since the journalist who first broke the news continues to defend his report. For a long time, he maintained that everything he wrote was accurate.
“Instead of being a cause for celebration however, it has resulted in an orchestrated campaign to discredit the story, the mother of the decuplets Ms Sithole, the Pretoria News’ editor, Piet Rampedi, as well as Independent Media and its chairperson, Dr Iqbal Survé, with claims that the story is ‘fake news’. It is not and we stand by our story,” Independent Media stated.
Pretoria News editor Piet Rampedi has apologised to his colleagues for the damage his story on SA’s so-called “Thembisa 10” babies did to Independent Media’s reputation. https://t.co/nxfM16ifPt
— Times LIVE (@TimesLIVE) June 22, 2021
As officials threatened legal action against the journalist who first reported the shocking birth, Piet Rampedi—who was also a close friend of Sithole and her husband—admitted that his story might not have been entirely accurate. He explained that he had seen Sithole with a noticeably large baby bump and only found out she had given birth to ten babies when she texted him with the news.
“Even though I stand by the fact that Sithole was pregnant, some aspects of the story could have been handled differently. Could I have done a better job? Absolutely! Especially when it comes to verifying the details. To be honest, I never approached the decuplets story as an investigation. I didn’t use any investigative tools or follow a checklist,” Piet wrote, as reported by News24.
Believing that Sithole and her husband had no reason to deceive him, he went ahead and published the extraordinary story.
The reason behind the mother’s deception about her pregnancy and the babies remains unknown. For now, support has been extended to the woman in question.
This case continues to be shrouded in mystery.