KHUBVI – Life has always been tough for the poverty-stricken Nemavunde family of Khubvi-Kanganama north of Tho-hoyandou. A concerned villager alerted Mirror to the poor living conditions in which the family live.

The family is so poor that they often go for days without anything to eat. Their makeshift hut is the sole testimony of their daily life suffering – thanks to a Good Samaritan who offered them old corrugated iron pieces - just to lay down their heads!

Elinah Nemavunde (34) shares the only hut with her sickly husband Freddy (42) and their four kids Mashudu (12), Jane (10), Rotondwa (6) and Uapfa (3). Both parents are unemployed and none of the children receives a child support grant from the state. Their mother only managed to acquire her identity document last week through the assistance of a concerned community member.

Their kids do not even have a school uniform and none of the three attending school at Jim Masindi Primary has paid school fees because there is no money in the family. Elinah and her husband survive by doing odd jobs like selling firewood and the income is not enough as they can go for weeks before they manage to get a potential customer.

The family’s tough life became more serious when their mud hut was washed away by the floods in 2000.

Elinah explained: “Since our hut fell, we have made numerous pleas for assistance, but it seems we have been forgotten by the authorities. We have made three applications for an RDP house but our applications were never successful. We are concerned that there are people who are better off, but they are benefiting from the low-cost housing pro-gramme. Community leaders have never come to assess the situation here and we hope Mirror will make our plight known. There is no privacy in this hut as we are forced to share it with our four kids because there is nothing we can do.”

Elinah says life becomes more difficult during winter or when it rains.

“The corrugated iron on the roof leaks heavily and we find it very difficult to sleep when it rains. We remain seated until the early hours of the next day because the floor becomes wet. The floor is only covered with cow dung and it is also risky for our health. The hut is also at great risk because the roof might be carried away if there were strong winds. The corrugated iron pieces are only fastened by pieces of wire and we have tied some pieces of wood to safeguard it from winds. All we need is an ordinary house and assistance to raise our kids so that they may one day become responsible members of the community. Because our kids do not have enough blankets and clothes, the cold winter nights turn our lives into hell. Sometimes we are forced to make fire inside the hut just to keep ourselves warm. They said our lives would change when we voted, but to us it remains the same.”

The family’s kitchen is an open space with no shelter and it also becomes difficult for them to prepare meals (if ever there is any) when it rains. A tiny mud wall surrounds the fireplace and although it is roofless, they are forced to use it because they have no other alternative.

The Spokesperson of the Khubvi Civic Association, Mr Mmbengwa Mbulaheni, said he was not aware of the Nemavunde fam-ily’s tough battle against poverty and poor living conditions, but he rushed to the family to assess the situation after the interview with Mirror. He said he would also investigate what had happened to the three unsuccessful applications for an RDP house by the family.

“The block committee has never informed us about the poor living conditions of the family. I have seen the conditions myself and it is not conducive for life. I am personally going to raise the matter in our next meeting so that the family can be assisted as soon as pos-sible. They have the right to enjoy life and to get a house so that they can be like other people.”

The Chief Social Worker of Thohoyandou Sub-district, Mr Khathutshelo Matamela, advised the Nemavunde family to visit his office at Makwarela government buildings. He said it would be easier to interview the family in person before finding possible ways of assisting them.

“We have a long queue of people who need our assistance in our register and I think it will be wiser for the family to come to our offices. They must come with a letter from their civic association to confirm their poor living conditions and our office will be pleased to assist them.”

Community members who would like to donate anything or assist the family by any means can call 072 351 0164 or visit the family at Khubvi, Gundo Street, on the north eastern side of Khubvi Filling Station.