Elderly resident gets home makeover

For more than a decade, 61-year-old Thoko Kubheka and 18 family members have lived in a two-room house.

Year after year, the difficult family situation saw some members being forced to live with friends, while Mrs Kubekha shared a small bed with five other relatives.

Survival was its own challenge, the family supported by a few child grants.

Through the efforts of workers employed by the local municipality, however, Mrs Kubekha’s dream of owning her own house came true last Thursday.

She was handed keys to a new five-room house at a special campaign at Ward 29 in Madadeni.

Construction on this home began in November last year under the guidance of BM Silinda Trading Enterprises, Construction and Renovations, in order to alleviate Mrs Kubheka’s suffering.

In her own words, she felt the presence of God himself as she opened the front door for the first time.

After receiving news the house would be completely furnished at a later stage, the floor was opened to various officials, including Mpume Dlamini of PPC Cement.

The company, she explained, had offered financial assistance for the purchase of cement products.

Although PPC Cement was there solely in its capacity as a sponsor of the project, Ms Dlamini said everything had run smoothly and she was satisfied with the quality of the house.

The mayor, Afzul Rehman, next explained the house handover was part of a country-wide effort by municipal workers.

As government, he continued, the responsibility was to assist residents wherever possible.

Residents were also presented with the opportunity to raise certain community issues with municipal powers-that-be, and the most common theme was jobs and job creation.

Cllr Rehman suggested residents form a group, to add weight to their voices instead of speaking alone.

He further asked for patience from the community, promising things would get done in time, and encouraging parents to send their children to school to secure their future.