The golden oldies might not vote in next year’s elections because of ill-treatment

About 200 elderly people belonging to different older persons’ clubs gathered outside the municipal building to raise their grievances and remind the municipality of their rights on Tuesday.
The older persons’ clubs of J.B. Marks asked to speak with the mayor.

They say he has made a lot of promises to them that have not yet materialised. Some of the elderly told the Herald they might not even vote if they continue to be ill-treated and their rights ignored.

According to Talitha Harwood (66), the spokesperson of older persons’ clubs, their slogan is ‘Nothing about us without us’. They wanted to know what the budget allocation of the older persons was, how and where was it spent.

‘We are also worried about the facilities in our community. We cannot use stadiums. There was a time when we wrote a letter to ‘Pule’ about the use of the stadium. On the morning that we wanted to use the stadium, the gates were locked. After the security guard opened, the sprinklers were on and he said he was not aware that we were coming. There were not even chairs for us to sit on. We want facilities that are appropriate for us old people,’ she said.

We want to be treated fairly and with respect
The calm old lady highlighted that there is also no desk in the municipality for older people to raise their voices.

‘This municipality does not adhere to the older persons Act 13 of 2016. We want to be treated fairly and with respect. We want to be heard. That is all in the act,’ she said, waving a file of papers in her hand.

She added that the clubs do not get transport during sports days. ‘Sometimes, it is as if they are giving us handouts – like they are doing us a favour. According to the older persons Act, this is compulsory,’ she said.

Talitha also dwelt on the issue of land. ‘There are about 19 clubs in the J.B. Marks area but they have not allocated any land to us. The mayor has promised to assist us in the past. After that, we even wrote letters but they went unanswered.

‘We use churches for our meetings. There are instances where we have to pay R500 a month for our meetings. We do not deserve to be treated in this way. We shouldn’t be taken for granted,’ she said firmly.

We do not exist in the eyes of the councillors
Sadness crept into Talitha’s eyes when she began to speak about the councillors in their communities.

‘None of the councillors in Promosa and Ikageng care about us – we do not exist in their eyes. In our own Gladiator club, there is an older person who has been struggling for a house for years. When she went to the councillor, the councillor arrogantly said: “I was not there at the time of your letter and issue.”

Talitha said the aged deserve to be treated with respect. Why don’t our councillors know about these things?

‘It shows they do not know their own work. We want to know where to report councillors who do not perform their duties. We do not know. We are being ill-treated.’

‘We want the mayor to give us a date to meet with us. It is very urgent,’ said another grandmother in the crowd.

‘They used us to get votes. Zweli Mkhize visited us and begged us to vote for the ANC. If we continue to be ill-treated, we might not vote in the coming elections, said another grandmother. Another grey-haired lady nodded in agreement.

*Monica Sentle from the office of the executive mayor promised to organise a meeting for them with the mayor.