Durban — Enduduzweni, a community centre housing people with disabilities in Umlazi, near the Emhlabeni informal settlement, is on the brink of collapse as criminals continue to ravage it.
Vandals have stolen water pipes, light bulbs, doors and electricity cables, plunging it into disarray. The centre has been in existence since the early 1990s, but its future is bleak and its residents are pleading for help.
Among them is Maria Cebekhulu, who told Daily News that their pleas for help from the government appeared to have fallen on deaf ears.
“This place is a shadow of its former self. The people who live informally are vandalising this place. This is continuing unabated despite us having a security guard. We urge the government to restore this facility and provide more security,” said Cebekhulu.
Cebekhulu spoke to the Daily News on the sidelines of an imbizo that was called by outgoing Premier Nomusa Dube-Ncube on Wednesday at King Zwelithini Stadium in Umlazi.
The centre houses just over 30 people who live with disabilities, some wheelchair-bound and others blind. To make ends meet, the residents have teamed up to do craft work that they sell and share the profit.
Themba Dlamini blamed the government for “neglecting” them.
“Sometimes we are forced to sleep without electricity. There were people living here, but others have gone back to their families. It is a sad state of affairs,” he said.
Reflecting on the condition of the centre, he said the ceiling was worn out and leaking, adding that the toilets were broken. Doors and windows were also broken, leaving them exposed to criminals.
Community leader Siya Mkhize said attempts to curb the vandalism had been unsuccessful.
“We have been trying to keep the criminals at bay, but they outsmart us. It appears that a lot of vandalism happens at night or in the early hours of the morning. The only way that this can stop is for the government to provide more security to guard that centre.”
A resident, Thabile Ngcobo, who lives near the centre, agreed.
“Without more security guards, the vandalism will continue. It's painful to see that centre in that appalling state,” she said.
Dube-Ncube decried the appalling state of the centre and laid the blame at the door of residents of the neighbouring Emhlabeni informal settlement.
“We try to revive that centre, but the neighbouring residents continue to vandalise it,” she said.
“We will have to find alternative ways to make that centre better and safe for its inhabitants.”
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Daily News