MAKONDE - Born with only a right hand and a deformed lower body, Mukhethwa Ntshavheni (16) of Makonde village north of Thohoyandou, is determined to confront life with courage, but she needs assistance as her unemployed mother cannot afford to cater for all her special needs.

She needs artificial limbs to make her life easier. Mukhethwa is at present in Grade 6 at Jim Masindi Primary School. Although Mukhethwa receives a monthly disability grant from the government, her mother, Joyce Ntshavheni (62) says life is tough for the family and she is begging for assistance from community members to raise her daughter.

Despite being 16 years old, Mukhethwa has an abnormal digestive system condition and her mother is forced to change her disposable nappies three times a day. “I use all her grant money to buy disposable nappies. The money is not enough, because she also needs clothing, a balanced diet and other special needs. The situation is so disturbing that I have to go to her school to change her nappies and this is affecting her performance in the class. Children of her age are about to finish their secondary education, but she is highly disturbed by her disability,” she said.

Ms Ntshavheni said she was thankful to the Department of Health for providing her daughter with a wheelchair, but she is concerned that the wheelchair is small and at times it needs repair. “If the wheelchair is broken, I carry her on my back to school or she crawls, using her one hand because her legs are totally deformed. She needs a bigger and better quality wheelchair that will make her life easier, as she will be able to move around freely.”

She said she would be grateful if she can be assisted financially so that Mukhethwa can acquire artificial limbs. “I am very poor and cannot afford all this. All I can afford is a bag of maize meal so that she cannot go to bed with an empty stomach. I need assistance because I believe that my daughter deserves to enjoy life like anyone else, regardless of her disability.”

According to her, she is highly disturbed by people who look at Mukhethwa and feel pity for her. “She must be treated with respect like any other normal human being because if people show that they feel pity for her, she becomes withdrawn and acts strangely, thinking that she is an outcast and a useless person.”