By REGINALD KANYANE
An elderly woman from Magogong village in Taung said she is happy to finally receive a house. Lele Seitshokelo (78) stays in a mud two-roomed house alone and said she had lost hope after the donor, who was supposed to build her a house five years ago, disappeared in the thin air.
However, Seitshokelo said she is grateful that the executive mayor of Dr Ruth Segomotsi Mompati District Municipality, Motseokae Maje came to her rescue. She said it is heart-warming to see people like Maje still in their midst.
“I am happy to see the newly-elected executive mayor coming to my rescue and spending his 67 minutes of humanity here. I stay with one of my children, but in most cases, I stay alone because she is seldom home.
“I had no hope that one day I’ll receive a decent house after the donor, who was supposed to build me a house disappeared. I am not sure what happened, but I had incomplete structure outside for almost five years,” she said.
Seitshokelo further said, when Maje visited her house and promised to finish her house, she was skeptical. She said she regained her confidence when indeed he came to do an assessment.
“Finally, he is here with local people to finish the house. Truly, I feel honoured, and may Almighty bless him,” said Seitshokelo.
According to Seitshokelo, she originally comes from Dithakwaneng village, near Kuruman and she relocated to Magogong village during her time while working on the farms. A mother of four said she does not feel safe because there were few break-in attempts at her house previously.
Meanwhile, Maje said: “I started my 67 minutes of Mandela Day at Thusanong Disability Centre in Huhudi Township, near Vryburg, where we donated garden tools and JoJo tank. Now, we came to complete a house here in Magogong village.
“This incomplete house was abandoned by a donor five years ago and I decided to come and complete it using my own salary from the municipality. Remember, the late Dr Nelson Mandela devoted his life to the service of humanity — as a human rights lawyer, a prisoner of conscience, an international peacemaker, and the first democratically elected president of a free South Africa.”
He further said on 18 July every year, everyone is invited to mark Nelson Mandela International Day by making a difference in their communities. Maje added that each and every person has the responsibility to change the world for the better.
“The Mandela Day is an occasion for all to take action and inspire change. As an activist, I live among the people and the condition here is very inhuman. One would not expect an elderly person for that matter or even anybody to be subjected to these conditions today in this democratic dispensation.
“So, I saw it befitting to come and make a positive contribution as the deployee of the ANC. This will bring back the elderly woman’s dignity. I am using my own resources with support from my family,” said Maje.
He also encouraged the youth not to lose hope, but to use various avenues to improve their lives.
The Guardian 