‘I voted ANC and still live in a shack’
An elderly woman in Sakhile is still waiting for her RDP house after she was promised that she'll get it after voting.
The ANC allegedly promised Ms Elizabeth Mbatha a house, in exchange for her vote.
According to this elderly and disabled woman, she was told that she will receive a house after voting for them.
“I agreed to vote for them because I needed a house, but they did not build one,” she said.
According to her some people came to her and registered her so she could vote.
“They picked me up me with a car and took me to the voting station on election day.”
This incident occurred during the 2009 national elections.
The ANC representatives allegedly came back again before the 2011 local elections and told her the same story.
“I voted for the ANC again in the hope of receiving a house, but I’m still staying in a shack,” Ms Mbatha said.
Her shack is not in a good condition, it has holes in the wall and roof.
This three room shack is covered with papers on the wall and they used plastic to divide the rooms.
According to her a contractor, who was building RDPs around her area, also dug holes for the foundation.
Her happiness however was short-lived, because the contractor told her that they can not build her a house, because she has a home in Newcastle.
Ms Mbatha said the house in Newcastle does not belong her, it was her parents’ house.
Mr Collen Sikhakhane, DA councillor, said there has been little change in the community after 21 years of democracy under the ANC leadership.
“The ANC councillors do not care about the people, but only about themselves.”
According to Mr Sikhakhane they only want to enrich themselves, with other people’s needs not being important.
The contractor left the foundation holes as is, after informing her that they will not build her a house.
Ms Mbatha claimed she went to the Lekwa Municipality and requested them to fill the holes with sand, which was done.
She stays with her granddaughter, her son and her sister’s son and the family has no other income besides her pension grant.
“My pension money is too little for all of us,” she said.
Ms Mbatha also said they run out of food in the middle of the month because she can not afford to buy groceries for the whole month.
She also spends R100 monthly on transport for physiotherapy appointments at the Standerton Hospital.
According to an ANC councillor, they are aware of Ms Mbatha’s case and have tried to help her.
“She can not get another one due to having a house in Newcastle registered under her name,” she said.
She also said a person is not allowed to have two RDPs.
According to the councillor, she advised her to ask her daughter to apply for a RDP after finding out that Ms Mbatha has another house.
“Her daughter stays in the same area, which is not far from her home,” the councillor said.
She also said they sent home-based carers to her because the children are too young to take care of her.
