Senior citizen in need of care
An elderly man lies on the concrete sidewalk in town with nothing but his tattered jersey and torn pants.
The old man has allegedly made the front of the shopping store his home. “With the little help that he receives, he still comes back and lies there,” said the shop owner.
The corner of Haig and Arras streets in town is a place of business and religion. A church is right opposite the Macarena shop.
The old man, known as Johannes, lies there basking in the sun. Not much heat can he collect from the concrete floor as the winter chill settles in, as the sun is down and frost and wind take over the night. Johannes has no shoes, no proper clothing and the worst of all is that his condition is very bad when it comes to his health.
For a senior citizen such as himself, he should be in the care of his children or that of professionals, but he just lies in front of the shop with every sunrise and every sunset.
Johannes is not a mental patient, his logic is sound and he speaks audibly, however the only thing bothering him is the pain that he feels from lying on the concrete floor. He has haemorrhoids the size of a tomato and it oozes with blood as the old man lies on the concrete floor, helpless and in pain.
It is alleged by the shop owners that they have tried several times to contact his family and once when they were able to get hold of them, they were told that Johannes needs to beg for money as there is no one at home to provide for him.
“We bought him slippers the other day; it was so cold that night. We came back the following morning and Johannes said that the ‘nyaope boys’ had stolen his slippers and he was in no condition nor had the power to chase them,” said Mr Stephan Coetzee.
According to the Macarena store owners Johannes has been staying there for some time and at times his children come and just give him food but they are not willing to live with him. Allegedly even when the ambulances come and get Johannes, they bring him right back to where they had found him.
Johannes is sickly, he needs professional help and attention.
At his age chances of him having medical aid are slim and so the best health care is not something that he can easily receive.
Social workers within the eMalahleni area were unavailable for comment or advice on how best to deal with Johannes’s situation.
