Yamkelani Tlhatsi was born with this condition 11 years ago. Among other things, it causes excessive congestion in his lungs and he needs to use a ventilator and suction machine between two to six times a day. Sometimes, the infection even affects his feet and he cannot walk.
According to his mother, Mrs Helen Tlhatsi, Yamkelani was born without issues but spent the whole of 2011 in Chris Hani Baragwanath Hospital. Doctors had to put a device in his throat and operate on his nose so he can breathe. He needs to go back to the hospital for regular treatment.
Despite all the hardship he has to go through, the friendly, loving boy, who attends Boitkeo Special School in Khutsong, is a joy to his family.
Unfortunately, numerous service delivery problems are now threatening little Yamkelani’s life.
A huge rubbish heap opposite their home in Kokosi Extension 5 causes a stench that hangs over their house.
“We and our neighbours have pleaded with people not to throw their rubbish here, but they continue to do so when we are asleep.
“Sometimes, the people even throw dead dogs here. My husband then picks them up and throws them somewhere else,” she says.
Meanwhile, sewage also streams from a maintenance hole in front of their neighbour’s yard.
When there were a lot of sewage problems lower down in the road, the municipality replaced a part of the pipe. The sewage now leaks higher up, close to the family’s home.
Another huge issue is the electricity supply problems in the area since around August.
The family and their neighbours often have no power, sometimes, for days on end.
So far, their complaints to the municipality have fallen on deaf ears. When there is a power interruption, the machines that keep Yamkelani’s airway open cannot work. Although a nearby tavern owner has lent the family a generator, he usually needs it himself when the electricity is off for longer periods.
“Yamkelani stresses a lot when he gets very sick and so do I.
“The social workers at Carletonville Hospital say I am not looking after my boy, but they don’t realise the conditions we live in.
“Several times, I have had to pay for a private car or ambulance to take him to Baragwanath, where the doctors understand his condition,” she says. The family believes the municipality’s help in sorting out the service delivery problems in their area would go a long way to improve Yamkelani’s condition.
Although his father does part-time jobs as an electrician and recently even went to Cape Town to help a client, the family does not have enough money for a generator.
Anyone who may be able to assist can contact Helen at 078 930 2751 or 073 997 7069.
The Merafong City Local Municipality failed to respond to questions about the service delivery problems before the newspaper went to print.
Some of the rubbish in the veld opposite the family’s yard.
