A 58-year-old man from Sandford near Hazyview is asking the members of the public to help him get a house, furniture and some food.

However, he said a job offer will even be better, because the family now depends on a social grant for their two children.

Shadrack Shabangu said the situation he is living in with his eight kids and sick wife is dire. “The house we are living in does not have proper roofing and has holes in the walls and the floor. We do not have furniture.”

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He had to send three of the children to stay with relatives because they could not accommodate or feed them. “Now my wife is sick, and I have to look after the five kids whom I cannot feed. I lost my job some time ago. I tried to get help from the City of Mbombela to get the house they promised me during the election campaign, but until today they haven’t come back to fulfil their promise,” he said.

Shabangu’s children are now fully dependent on the food the teachers give them to eat at home as well. He and his wife are depending on handouts from neighbours and family members. “I now am pleading to anyone who can assist me with a house, bed and food. I know I am 58, but I can still work to provide for my family since I am not receiving a social grant due to my age,” he said.

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The community activist, Darrango Maile, told this publication he had tried to get sponsors to help the family, but some officials of the City of Mbombela (CoM) had told him that they would assist the family. “I don’t want to name and shame people. I had people who were willing to assist the family fixing the current two rooms, but they were stopped by the so-called comrades who were campaigning for votes in the area. After the elections, they disappeared and the sponsor is gone. For the sake of the kids who are innocent, I am pleading with the entire South Africa to assist the family so that the kids can have a decent home.”

Maile said to repair the current two rooms, they will need 12 bags of cement, two doors and glass for the window. The children are also in need of clothes and food donations will be welcomed.
To help, call 060 657 3741.

The CoM’s spokesperson, Joseph Ngala, had been unavailable for comment at the time of publishing.