DJ and radio presenter Dineo Ranaka may not be returning to Kaya 959, according to a colleague who spoke to Zimoja. This comes after the radio and TV personality, who hosts the breakfast show on the Gauteng-based commercial radio station with Solomzi “Sol” Phenduka, took time off in May and June following her struggles with mental health and suicidal thoughts.
Dineo Ranaka and Kaya 959 in Mutual Separation Talks
“We doubt she is coming back. She loves the show but she asked not to come back,” said the colleague. The source also stated that there is no fight, just a pending mutual separation negotiation between Dineo and the powers that be. “There is possibly no chance of going back on the air.”
Sizwe Dhlomo Holds the Fort
When Dineo was off air, her colleague Sizwe Dhlomo – who also hosts the Kaya 959 drive show – held the fort with Sol. Another source told Sunday World that the initial agreement was that Sizwe hosted the show until the end of June.
“But when they realized she was not coming to work, they then asked Sizwe to continue presenting the show until end of July. They told him that the show was doing extremely well under his stewardship and implored him to continue steering the ship. There is no doubt Dineo was doing a good job but Sizwe did not disappoint either.”
Dineo Ranaka Updates Fans
A week after Dineo opened up about her suicidal thoughts, she was admitted into a Pretoria mental wellness center. However, less than a week later, she reportedly discharged herself.
On Sunday, 2 July, Dineo told fans that she has been living with Temporal Lobe Epilepsy since her mid-twenties and she believes that her condition triggers her depression – she revealed last week that she was diagnosed with severe chronic depression.
“I’ve been living with it since my mid-twenties. My episodes have gotten worse with age. It frightens me honestly. Imagine having seizures in your sleep. So I experience seizures in my sleep. My fear is what if I never wake up. Just so you understood It’s not my body that goes into seizure. My BRAIN has a seizure. It’s SCARY,” Dineo wrote.