Durban old age home explains 50 per cent rent increase

AN elderly resident living at Tuinsig Centre for the Aged said she is fed up at not being allowed out at the old age home since March.

The woman who spoke to Berea Mail on condition of anonymity said they are starting to feel claustrophobic. “This is a violation of our constitutional freedoms now,” they said. “We understand that older people are at risk but with the country now going at Level 2, we thought we would be allowed to go out.”

According to Alert Level 2 government regulations, visitors are not allowed inside older persons’ residential facilities but it says nothing about people leaving aforementioned facilities.

In response, Tuinsig, which is based in Berea, said visitors are still prohibited from entering the facility. “Residents were however allowed to exit the facility with permission of the Matron for specific purposes as long as they followed the protocols set out in the regulations when returning to Tuinsig,” said Tuinsig. “It is correct that social gatherings were not allowed. Again this was done in terms of the regulations.”

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The elderly citizen that spoke to Berea Mail said they have repeatedly asked to be let out for leisurely activities like walks on the park but their pleas got rebuffed by management. Another issue the resident expressed was that their rent was suddenly raised from R3420 to R6000 per month (a 57 percent markup). “Some of us are pensioners and there is no way that we can afford this,” they said.

Tuinsig said the rental increase was necessitated by Covid-19 related expenses. “The increase was forced upon us due to the COVID-19 pandemic, which included the inability to fill the facility, unforeseen expenses related to the procurement of correct PPE equipment, and the non-payment of rentals in certain instances. These factors all impacted negatively on the financial position of the institution and necessitated an increase to ensure continued services,” said Tuinsig.

Tuinsig said they have had meetings with residents and their families regarding these issues and are looking at ways to help those who cannot afford the rental increases.

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