Residents at De Wetshof Old Age Home have expressed concern over poor living conditions and lack of service delivery at the home, despite paying R300 per month for board.
One of the residents, Clara Janda said her sewage has been problematic for two years and whenever she uses her toilet, faeces and toilet paper overflow out of the sewerage drain next to her door.
“My neighbours always complain about it because of the bad smell but there is nothing I can do about it. I need the toilet to relieve myself. Am I not supposed to eat to avoid going to the toilet? It will still take the City of Joburg yet another year to fix this. I need to use my toilet like any other human being,” said Janda.
She said after reporting the issue to the Department of Local Government and Housing, only a hole was dug. “They said the sewerage problem was caused by [the roots of a] tree. They dug up the tree and never came back.
“It didn’t even solve the problem but gave me more problems instead. Look how deep this hole is. What will happen if I fall inside here?” she asked
Janda is not the only resident who has complained about service delivery, with other residents complaining either about leaking roofs or non-functioning toilets. According to the residents, some of the carpets in the houses are rotten and the hand basins are loose.
The elderly residents also raised concerns about safety at the old-age home.
“The caretaker of the property does not look after the pensioners’ needs. He is hardly in the office. He came here once and looked at my place but never came back after that,” said Janda.
Ward 118 councillor Neuren Petersen said these issues had been pointed out to the manager of the old-age home over a month ago, who said that the issue had been resolved. “I have realised that it has not been fixed and I will not rest until there is a solution to this problem,” Petersen said.
The Joburg Express contacted the caretaker of the property who said he could not respond to the allegations made by the residents. He referred the paper to the City of Johannesburg.
A request for comment was sent by Joburg Express to Carina van Zyl from the Department of Social Development on 20 February, requesting comment by 22 February. By the time of publication six days later, no comment had been received.
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