Help Clermont woman (68) solve her ID dilemma

AFTER being shoved from pillar to post, Clermont resident Simangele Mavundla has lost nearly all hope of ever getting her identity document (ID).

The 68-year-old woman said she is now just numb. Sitting with despair, Mavundla said, “This really breaks my heart, and I now suffer from high blood pressure because of the stress. I have tried for many years to resolve this matter, but to this day, no success.

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“I wish to lead a normal life, but now I am starting to think that I was never meant for good things. I have never had a proper job; I used to earn money by washing people’s clothes and collecting cardboard boxes and plastics, but now I cannot as my health is deteriorating,” she said.

The Highway Mail has published a couple of stories about this woman’s never-ending quest for obtaining her ID.

“I truly believe that my life could have turned out for the better if I had an ID,” said the hopeless pensioner.

Each time Mavundla gets her hopes up that her application will be accepted, something always goes wrong. Over the years, many people have tried to resolve her dilemma.

According to Mavundla, she never knew her parents. “I was raised by an elderly couple in Matatiele. I found out when I was older that my parents were from Lesotho and were killed in a car accident. I have been told that I need to produce documents proving I was born in South Africa. Where am I supposed to get them? This is the only country I know – why should I suffer like this?” she said with desperation.

Life has never been kind to Mavundla who has found herself homeless often in her life. In 2017, she resided in a shack which did not have a roof, windows or walls. This was after her previous shack burnt down in 2012.

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After an article was published about Mavundla’s appalling living conditions and her years of pain and suffering, the Rotary Club of Pinetown offered to collect donations on her behalf.

A proper shack was built for her, but that was also short-lived as she and other tenants were evacuated from the plot. She had to rent a shack for which she is struggling to pay rent. “Just last week, I found my clothes outside. I am basically homeless once again.”

“I don’t know how to feel anymore – I feel like a zombie with no direction. I have accepted that I will never experience joy in my life,” said the distraught old woman.

Mavundla, who should be getting her grant money by now, said she depends on the St Clement’s home-based care project. “I get my meals from Monday to Friday. During the weekends, I struggle to get food, and most of the time I go for the whole day without eating,” she said with not a single sparkle in her eyes.

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“My son did not even finish school. He also does not have an ID. It is painful,” she said.

She appealed for someone to help her. “I am grateful for all the people who have tried to assist me, but I appeal to the officials to hear my plea. I do not wish to die with a heavy heart,” she said.