Ex-Miss SD tiffany is dead

MBABANE – Former Miss Swaziland 2008/2009 Tiffany Sibong-akonkhe Simelane has died after committing suicide on Monday afternoon.

The death of the 21-year-old ex-beauty queen comes exactly 22 days after she relinquished her title to current Miss Swaziland Nompilo Mncina.

News of Tiffany’s death began spreading like wildfire from Monday night after her demise was posted on the popular social networking site Facebook.

Her death was yesterday confirmed by her uncle, Bongani Eugene Zwane, who said the former Waterford Kamhlaba pupil died while undergoing treatment at the Mbabane Clinic.

Zwane could not divulge details regarding the suicide, but unconfirmed reports are that Tiffany took her own life by swallowing weevil tablets.

Also, reasons for her to commit suicide remain subject to speculation as the family had no idea what could have influenced her decision to end her life.

Even though there was further talk of a suicide note that she left behind, the devastated family could not officially comment on this.

"I was called at around 5pm on Monday and told that Tiffany had been taken to the Mbabane Clinic and I rushed there only to find that she had succumbed to death," the uncle said, in a sombre tone.

Zwane said information he had was that Tiffany was rushed to the Mbabane Clinic by her mother who had received a call in the afternoon that her daughter was in a critical condition.

However, another version is that she was rushed there by a well-known Mbabane socialite.

"When she got to the Clinic she was quickly attended to, but succumbed to death as she was certified dead between 15-30 minutes later," a devastated Zwane said.

The uncle said after being certified dead, Tiffany was then taken to the Mbabane Burial Benefit Society mortuary where she is currently being kept.

He further revealed that the suicide act unfolded at Tiffany’s rented flat as she had reportedly moved out of the home she shared with her grandmother at Fonteyn in Mbabane.

"I don’t know where the house she stayed in is located because I’ve just returned to the country in the last two weeks," Zwane said.

Tiffany’s grandmother said she was still not ready to make a comment.

She referred further inquiries to Tiffany’s mother whom she said had gone to the Mbabane Clinic to meet with the doctor who had attended to the late beauty.

However, the mother also refused to comment as she asked the grandmother to refer questions to Zwane.

Tiffany was crowned Miss Swaziland on the night of July 26, 2008 at a glittering ceremony held at the Royal Swazi Sun Convention Centre in Ezulwini.

She won a grand prize of a yellow Fordka worth E30 000.

Her reign will be remembered mostly by the run-ins she had with organisers of the Miss Swaziland Beauty Pageant as she would sometimes disappear without a trace.

A week before she stepped down from the throne, Tiffany, in an exclusive interview with the Times Sunday Style section, said she regretted ever being Miss Swaziland.

She thanked God that time had come to relinquish the crown, which she said had brought her a lot of stress so much that at some point "I thought I was really going crazy".

She described the title as nothing, but a liability to her as she had never benefitted from it.

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