VANDERBIJLPARK. – An elderly man attempted suicide last Thursday when his efforts to obtain money owed to him since early last year ended in yet another queue.

Jabulane Patose (55) has suffered a severe stroke that affects half his body and he can’t walk properly. He was trying to obtain the R55 000 allegedly owed to him by Emfuleni Local Municipality, ELM. The incident happened recently inside the building of the Department of Revenue in President Kruger Street, Vanderbijlpark.

Patose complained that no one wanted to give him attention. “Instead they took me from pillar to post,” he said. Anger and frustration pushed Patose to attempt suicide as he popped several bottles of tablets. A security guard grabbed the medication out of his hands.

“Employers that don’t pay salaries for months on end do not realize the human misery they are inflicting,” he said.

Patose was a Community Liaison Officer (CLO) at the Early Child Development (ECD) building project in Boipatong. He claims he has not been paid for the past nine months.

He was referred to get attention at the ELM main building. On his arrival the following day, he said other officials told him to return at a later stage.

When asked about the medication he swallowed, he said, “Why do I have to live as no one seems to be giving me basic attention? I am nothing to these officials,” he explained.

When going to print, Stanley Gaba, Manager of Communications, Marketing, Branding & Events Management at ELM, was not available for comment.