If Nelson Mandela were still alive he would have turned 102 years old on Saturday, so it was appropriate that Ndlovini resident Nini Gaga, who is 102, benefited from a Mandela Day project organised by the ANC Ndlambe sub-region.
Gaga had been living in a cracked three-room house which leaked when it rained. Members of the ANC put on a new roof on Gaga’s house as well as distributing food parcels to 21 other families for Mandela Day.
ANC convener of the task team in the Ndlambe sub-region, Vuyisile Mnyani said 20 of the families were in Port Alfred and one was in Bathurst.
Although the renovation was organised by the ANC, they employed builders to do the actual job.
An emotional family member, Ntombizonke Gaga, thanked the party on behalf of her family. “We are very thankful. We are so happy when our house is finally renovated. It has been raining through since 2018,” she said.
Gaga’s situation was taken to the ANC by Ward 7 councillor Mbuyiseli Yali, as Gaga resides in his ward. Yali said he had heard about the situation from Ndlambe FM in around April this year and was also approached about it.
“I visited the family when I heard about the matter. I then reported it to the ANC and said there is this situation of the mother and the ANC promised to make it part of the Mandela Day programme,” he said.
Coordinator of the task team Vivian Maphaphu elaborated on the food parcel beneficiaries and why only one family benefited from Bathurst. “To be realistic Bathurst is one of the areas that has previously received many food parcels. We also obtained the list of these families from social development because social workers have the database of these needy families,” she said.
Maphaphu said they had targeted child-headed families.
The programme was said to have spent about R13,000, excluding payment of the builders.
