MANDALA – When Mr Lavhelesani Packson Nemandivhe (41) of Mandala village in the Nzhelele Valley developed a small pimple on his face seventeen years ago, little did he know that he was going to lose the shape of his face completely.

Nemandivhe is suffering from an illness that none of the medical practitioners or traditional healers could define. According to him the starting point of the disease was when he developed a pimple on his upper lip just below the nose way back in 1985, a few months after he married his first wife, Elisa.

He said that although the pimple started as a small dot on the face, it caused him pains that were beyond description. "The growth developed rapidly and within months my whole face was swollen," he said. He revealed that he was employed at a local supermarket as a driver when he fell ill.

He stated that he had consulted several medical centres including specialists who all failed to define or cure the disease. Realising that the situation was getting out of hand, Nemandivhe started to consult traditional and spiritual healers who could not help him as well.

Nemandivhe told Mirror that he then left his job prematurely as he was shy to go to the people with his shapeless face. According to him, he has already spent more than R40 000 on his endeavor to have his ailment healed. He, his two wives and four children are now relying on his mother's old age pension grant for a living. Two of his children are in grade nine, while the other two are in grade six and four respectively.

He revealed that he collects painkillers from the local health centres regularly in an effort to control the pain. He stated that none of his children, including a married daughter know the real shape of his face, as they were all born after it was deformed.

Although Nemandivhe has been to several places searching for somebody who could cure his disease, he still hasn't given in. According to him he still believes that somewhere in this world there is somebody who can take him out of his "hell". "My problem is that I don't have money anymore and for that reason I need donations," he said. Nemandivhe can be contacted at Tel 0828117169.