A disabled rural man, who has been waiting for a government house for the past 16 years, was over the moon when he was told his application for a house had been approved.

A foundation was dug at his site, which further cemented the hope that a house was to be built for him finally.

The joy of having a house was short lived as he was later told that a mistake had been made and the house would not be built with the others that are being built in the village.

Mr Phineas Munyai (52) of Fhedziasni Ha-Nesengani in the Vuwani area, a mental care patient, is a sad man once again. "I waited for too long for the government to build me a house and I even tried to build one myself, but I could not complete it because I did not have money," he said.

He said a councillor in his ward took him to Vuwani and he was told to sign papers at the Makhado Municipality's offices in Vuwani, which he thought was a sure sign that the house would be built. "Not long ago, a councillor once again visited me at night and told me that I would not benefit in that batch as there were problems with my application. This surprised me a lot as I had even signed for the house. All I am left with is a trench of a foundation, but not a house,” he added.

“The foundation will remain as a reminder that the government wanted to build me a house, but some people in power felt I did not deserve it," he said with sadness written on his face. "I am shattered; I had thought that my time to get a house had finally arrived. I signed for everything and now I am being told that my papers are not in order. I suspect corruption and ask the government to intervene," he said.

The spokesperson for the Makhado Municipality, Louis Bobodi, said Munyai was on the initial list of the 60 houses allocated by the Department of Co-operative Governance, Human Settlement and Traditional Affairs. He said when the time came for them to build, they were told that the number had been reduced to 49 and the beneficiaries were selected according to need. "The community and all the structures were responsible for the selection of the recipients and it is just unlucky if he was not one of the chosen ones. If he feels that he was not properly treated, he can always write a letter of complaint or even visit our offices. Our doors are always open, and we will assist him," he said.

Bobodi said they would not just leave the matter unattended but would conduct an investigation to determine if there was any wrongdoing.