Christmas came early for Melville’s Thobile Hadebe, who had her home renovated by the KwaDukuza Municipality (KDM) last week.
Hadebe beamed her way through the handover on Wednesday morning and was thrilled to finally receive the keys from KDM mayor, Lindile Nhaca.
Her home was selected as part of the pilot ‘Breaking New Ground’ programme and the renovation costing R142 000 was funded internally by the municipality.
The Breaking New Ground programme is a national human settlements initiative and KDM is hoping Hadebe’s home will serve as proof of concept to garner national funding going forward.
“The homes targeted are the older RDPs from the late 90s and early 2000s which need repairs,” said KDM human settlements director, Sandile Cele. “We have seen poor conditions in a number of these homes and want to be able to help. That is why we are pushing to be part of the national programme.”
Hadebe’s home had a crack down the centre of the lounge wall that was big enough to see through and was in dire need of repair work.
She had long struggled with leaks and damp and was worried that the wall might collapse on her and her daughter.
“I am just so happy, it means a lot to me,” she said. “I can’t have anything to complain about, thank you God.”
The house was chosen for repairs in June last year, with most work completed over the past six months.
In keeping with the Christmas spirit, KDM also handed over new furniture and non-perishable food to the grateful Hadebe.
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