Pretoria – The Gauteng Department of Social Development says its offer to send a disabled boy to a care facility -- after he and his mother were evicted -- has been turned down by the boy’s mother, saying she prefers to care for him personally.
Lucia Mdluli and her 17-year-old son Lindokuhle, who is brain damaged, were among the 2 000 residents who have been evicted from the Newtown Urban Village by new owners, the Johannesburg Housing Company (JHC).
The JHC evicted the residents after sending them several notices since 2011 to move from the building and a Supreme Court of Appeal ruling against the resident’s objections to be evicted.
Department spokesperson Sello Mokoena said on Wednesday that a team of social workers from the department visited Mduli and her son on Monday after the media widely publicised Mdluli’s plight.
“In a bid to assist, social workers from the provincial government have offered to place Lindokuhle at Zanele Mbeki Frail Care Centre in Nigel. This offer was refused by Mdluli, who prefers to care for her son herself.
“The Gauteng Provincial Government believes the care the staff at the Zanele Mbeki Frail Care Centre would be of great assistance to Lindokuhle. He has the right to dignity, shelter and quality healthcare,” said Mokoena. – SAnews.gov.za
