Promise Ndlovu or ‘die Klipvrou’ as she was referred to was adjusting well at her new home at The Ethembeni Children’s Haven with everything that she could have ever dreamt of, a warm bed, books, her garden. She even received brand new reading glasses, her future seemed bright as can be.

WITBANK NEWS reported in November last year on the wonderful news of how the famous ‘Klipvrou’ was rescued from the elements and her ‘home on the rocks’ on the corner of Nelson Mandela- and OR Tambo Street by Bishop Jeremiah Zulu and the South African Community Crime Watch (SACCW) responders.

When the National lockdown was implemented in South Africa, problems arose.

As many other South Africans felt the pressure from one of the lockdown regulations of the ban the selling of cigarettes, Ndlovu also felt the pressure. After a few weeks with no more resources for cigarettes, Promise took a blanket and left her new home behind, back to her known spot.

Bishop Zulu went to her numerous times to take her back but as soon as the ‘stock’ that she managed to collect while begging was finished she would leave again.

“The problem that we are facing now is that the public understandably trying to help her by giving her money, cigarettes and parcels are enabling her to keep going back to the streets,” said a distraught Bishop Zulu.

The saddest part of all according to Bishop Zulu is that she has everything she needs at her new home and at her age, she should not be sleeping on the streets in this cold weather, but the problem is that she knows where to go for hand-outs.

“I still make sure that I stop and speak to her regularly to see if she is ready to come back home, but she always states that I should come back the next day. After the ‘hype’ of her being removed from the streets the donations and resources for her also dried up, once people didn’t see her on the streets anymore she was not in their thoughts anymore. This is a huge part of the problem as it is a long process for someone that lives on the streets in a free lifestyle to be confined to one space after so many years, even though she had her own fully furnished home she would always speak about how she longs for the interaction of the people who always stopped and spoke with her on the streets. She made many regular friends that would come and bring her supplies while on the streets and she misses them. No one ever came to visit her while she was in her new home,” said a concerned Bishop Zulu.

Bishop Zulu stated that he will continue to try and get her back home where she belongs.

“We will need the community to assist us with this process. If you do stop to talk to her, rather than giving her hand-outs, try to convince her to come back to us,” pleaded Bishop Zulu.