A woman who had lived through three distinct eras and was reportedly the oldest person in the world passed away in South Africa at the age of 128.
According to local reports, mother-of-seven Johanna Mazibuko passed away on March 3 in her home in Jouberton, North West Province. She would have turned 129 in May.
Her family members claimed she possessed identification documents proving her birth date of May 11, 1894, and her upbringing on a maize field. They said she never attended school and was illiterate.
Mazibuko’s caregiver and daughter-in-law Thandiwe Wesinyana suggested Mazibuko may have passed away from a stroke in an interview with News24.
When will I pass away? What purpose does life serve? I am simply sitting here doing nothing, and the world has worn me out,” she added.
On Saturday, Mazibuko will be laid to rest in Jouberton, Klerksdorp.
She was one of 12 siblings, three of whom are still living now.
She described how nicely we lived on the land despite being illiterate to News24. There were no issues back then. I don’t have vivid memories of my youth, but I do recall a locust invasion.
‘We could catch and consume some of them. That felt similar to eating beef. We would just fry them and eat the like that just on their own.
Was there a person 128 years old?
Who was the oldest living person ever at 128? Johanna Mazibuko of South Africa was celebrating her 128th birthday and was thought to be the oldest person in the world, according to press reports from May 18 and May 25, 2022. Lucile Randon, who was 118 years and 73 days old as of May 25, 2022, is the current holder of the Guinness World Record for the oldest person still alive.