The name Somizi Mhlongo is well known by thousands of South Africans for his impactful work in the media and entertainment industry, with many recognising the former Idols SA judge for his unapologetic flamboyancy – but for those close to him, the revelation that he was gay, may have been a bitter pill to swallow.
Actress Palesa Madisakwane has recently opened up about the difficulties of her pregnancy after discovering that her former partner Somizi Mhlongo and father of her child was gay.
Speaking on the Boldly Owami Podcast, the mother of three who shares a daughter with the owner of Sompire Kids opened up on some of the earliest details of her relationship with the Sarafina actor, highlighting it was similar to any other relationship. It was not until after she was pregnant that she faced hard criticism from the public.
“When I was pregnant that is when it came out. His sister kept saying that he is different, and I also started noticing the company he was keeping. It was during this time that I discovered that he had a boyfriend,” Palesa explained.
“That was when I started understanding what it meant to be gay, because in those days we didn’t understand.”
She highlighted that this was one of the darkest moments in her life and that people were judging her and didnt believe her when she said she never knew he was gay.
“People said I wanted to trap him,” she said.
In an episode of Living the Dream with Somizi, she said: “Funny enough, he didn’t act gay or seem flamboyant. What hurts me the most is when he does his interviews, or when I read somewhere, he would often say that I knew he is gay. That is false, how did I know such?” she asked.
Despite being a single parent now, she credits her ex-husband Jakes Mocuminyane for being a father figure to her daughter.
She revealed that Somizi initially was not present in Bahumi’s life, it was not until her classmates discovered the truth about her father which led to her being teased, that he started drawing closer.
Meanwhile, their daughter recently celebrated her 30th birthday, Palesa says that she has never received an apology from the television personality for the hard times she has had to experience.
She adds that she no longer feels embarrassed about her past and now feels confident to confidently speak about it.
Also see: Palesa Madisakwane details why she regrets divorcing her husband
