Cape Town – Simon Filander, who lives in a plank house in Morning Star in Cape Town, was at a loss for words when Human Settlements Deputy Minister Zou Kota-Fredericks – accompanied by a large group of offenders from nearby prisons - walked into his yard on Wednesday to start renovating is family house.
In kick-starting nationwide activities to mark Mandela Month, the Deputy Minister, in partnership with the Department of Correctional Services, Old Mutual and other stakeholders visited the area where offenders started a process of renovating and building 16 houses to help improve the lives of families in the poverty-stricken township.
Mandela Month is commemorated annually in tribute to the late former President Nelson Mandela during the month of his birth.
On former President Mandela’s birthday, July 18, South Africans are called to dedicate 67 minutes of their time to give back through initiatives that can help make the lives of people better.
Filander said the renovated house will make things easier and create a better environment for his child living with a disability to live in.
“This makes things easier. There is no word in the dictionary that I can look up to explain how grateful we are that this is happening to us.
“I have tears waiting to come rolling down my cheeks, but not tears of sadness, but tears of joy,” he said.
Members of the community chose the Filander family as one of the 16 families that will benefit from the “Madiba Month” initiative because of the severity of their socio-economic situation.
Filander and his wife are both unemployed, he is disabled and his eight-year-old child is wheelchair-bound and suffers from cerebral palsy.
The offenders from Goodwood and Pollsmor correctional facilities this morning began giving their plank home a make-over. They will then start renovating a run-down brick house that he inherited from his father a few years ago.
Deputy Minister Kota-Fredericks said the initiative by both the departments was significant because it showed members of the community that government cared and it was a good way of carrying Madiba’s legacy forward, especially because of his love for children.
She said she was happy to assist the family who had been living in squalid conditions.
“We are here today … to renovate these houses here in Morning Star, an area where residents have been living in asbestos-built homes for many years,” she said.
While the move benefits the families, it is also seen as a positive step that will help offenders with artisan skills to give back to the community and good for rehabilitation and reintegration.
“We are grateful that the Department of Correctional services have brought in inmates who are able to assist in terms of person power,” the Deputy Minister said.
Manelisi Hlakuva, a prisoner from the Goodwood Correctional Centre of Excellence, said he was happy to be part of the initiative.
“We are here to help this community also in honour of the late Tata [Mandela]. He also valued helping other people and we also decided it was good for us to make a positive contribution to the community.
“As part of rehabilitation, we are aware of the mistakes we have made but we hope that our contribution will also help re-integrate us in the community,” he said. – SAnews.gov.za
