Limpopo premier warns ‘Ben 10s’ threaten women in leadership after house handover

Ramathuba made the comments on Wednesday while handing over a newly built house to the family of conjoined twins in Lulekani, under the Ba-Phalaborwa Local Municipality in the Mopani District.

She cautioned women in public office to avoid allowing personal relationships and younger partners to influence their decision-making.

“The downfall of us women – look at all the women. Why are we removed? Some of us are very old because of Ben 10s. That’s what is happening. Am I lying? I’m not,” she said.

At the event Ramathuba also suggested registering the house in the children’s names rather than the mother, saying,

“I wish that when we are done, we can even look at registering this house in the names of all the children and not the mother,”

and warned that people often target women in power to benefit from their influence.

On influence, flattery and public duties

Ramathuba recounted being warned about such pressures after her appointment as an MEC.

“People will suddenly tell you how beautiful you are,”

she said, adding that some men use flattery to gain access to influential women.

“You will even think, ‘I have not done any plastic surgery. I’m still Phophi.’ They will say you are the most beautiful woman. That’s men when they want to run the budget of the Department of Health,”

she said, and stressed she had refused to be manipulated.

She urged women to focus on their responsibilities and to ensure that power is not handed to people unfamiliar with grassroots campaigning.

“If you want to grow up the ladder, people must know you and your work. The power is yours. We are not giving it to somebody who does not even know what door-to-door campaigning is… No nonsense… I’m not going to allow that. We should stop this,”

she said.

Context: the family and the twins

The house was handed over to the family of conjoined twins who were born on 28 January 2026 at Mankweng Tertiary Hospital, outside Polokwane. The twins had been found joined at the abdomen and were transferred from Maphutha Malatjie Hospital in Namakgale for specialised treatment.

In March a team led by Professor Nyaweleni Tshifularo performed an eight-hour operation at Mankweng Hospital to separate the twins. The surgery began at about 7:45am and concluded shortly after 3pm. One of the twins later died in April after suffering multiple organ failure.

Announcing the death at a media briefing at Mankweng Hospital, Ramathuba said she had received a call on Good Friday informing her that one of the babies had developed complications.

“One of our twins was experiencing multiple organ failure… despite the team’s best efforts, the baby had sadly passed away,”

she said, describing the day as deeply painful.

Ramathuba said doctors had monitored both babies after the operation and had been concerned about a possible infection on the fifth day after surgery. She noted that while the separation itself was successful, infection set in and contributed to the tragedy.

Background on the premier

Ramathuba served as the Limpopo MEC for Health from 2015 until 2024 and was appointed the province’s first woman premier in June 2024.