A South African woman, Bongile Ntombela, who was stranded in the United Arab Emirates due to debt and unemployment, has successfully raised enough funds to clear her financial obligations. Initially, Ntombela owed 25,000 dirhams (R124,681.12), but a recent update on her TikTok revealed that the amount had been reduced to 21,000 dirhams (R106,384.03) by the bank.
Ntombela, who had been living and working in the United Arab Emirates for six years, lost her job earlier this year under challenging circumstances. “The company I worked for told me to resign or get fired. My ego could not take the word ‘fired,’ so I decided to resign. They allowed me to stay on their residence visa while I searched for another job, but unfortunately, I couldn’t find one,” she explained.
The situation worsened when her residence visa was cancelled, and the bank imposed a travel ban due to her inability to continue loan payments. Ntombela, who was close to completing her loan repayment by April, found herself stuck in the United Arab Emirates with no income and mounting pressure to settle the debt before being allowed to leave the country.
In a bid to return home, Ntombela started a fundraising campaign. Over just four days, she raised R144,188, surpassing the required amount. “Thank you to everyone who has given me a contribution, who has given me a call, who has sent words of encouragement. Ngiyabonga kakhulu (Thank you very much),” she expressed.
Ntombela said she find a job in South Africa, bringing an end to her harrowing ordeal.
