Khathu Rasilingwane’s Paraffin-Scented Childhood Shaped Her Political Ambition

Khathutshelo “Khathu” Rasilingwane says growing up without basic services helped shape the kind of politician she wants to be. The Democratic Alliance’s Ekurhuleni mayoral candidate spent her childhood in an East Rand informal settlement without electricity, running water or proper sanitation, according to The Citizen. At school, paraffin used at home left a smell on her clothes that she says set her apart from classmates. “I was always isolated at school because I smelt of paraffin,” she told the publication, describing it as stronger than the perfume worn by other girls. Rasilingwane’s mother raised her alone after her father died, earning money as a street vendor and working to send her daughter to private school. Rasilingwane said she became aware early on of what she saw as a lack of service delivery. A local DA activist made an impression on her by regularly checking on residents and trying to help, despite not being in government. She began attending party meetings as a teenager and joined the DA at 18. But, she said, continuing her education was not immediately possible: her family could not afford university, and they had limited access to information about bursaries and student financial assistance. With no television or radio at home, she said she had little guidance about further study. She worked as a promotional representative at events and saved enough to buy her first car. Rasilingwane later earned a marketing management degree and a postgraduate qualification in business administration. She applied to become an Ekurhuleni councillor in 2015 and stood in her first election. In her political work, she said, she met residents who had spent years trying to get government departments to respond. One encounter that stayed with her was a 75-year-old domestic worker she met while campaigning in Tembisa’s Winnie Mandela Zone 2. The account presents her bid for mayor against the backdrop of the hardships and community experiences she says informed her commitment to public service.