My reasons for writing this letter is prompted by what I see daily on the streets of our townships, of men and women who are affected by mental illness. Many of these people eat from rubbish bins and roam the streets almost without clothes or wrapped in dirty rags and plastic sheets.
It is sad and un-African to see unfortunate people being neglected by their own families and the very ANC government whom their families voted into power in 1994. Our health authorities cannot continue to treat those who have been afflicted with mental illness with disrespect and dishonour.
It hurts to find that in our country, criminals are treated a lot better than these innocent psychiatric victims in our society. Even the local police, who are supposed to assist families of mental illness patients, have failed to render any meaningful assistance, leading to many of them roaming the streets.
There is no doubt that the standards of public health in the country has deteriorated drastically since the advent of democracy. And it pains me that it is the mentally ill who are suffering the most from this deterioration and nothing is being done about it.
Samkelo Mthimkhulu
VOSLOORUS
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