Visitors brought joy to granny, 68
Granny Mphephu Manganyi’s ID problem of many years is solved at last
Benson Ntlemo
A 68 year old granny who had been wallowing in poverty for many years amid ID struggles has told of her years of struggle after she was given an ID with wrong names after she reported a lost ID at Vuwani home affairs office years ago.
When Mphephu Johanna Manganyi of Dakari Village in the Collins Chabane municipality turned 60 eight years ago, she had lost her ID five years previously and was not able to be registered for elderly person’s grant.
Now she is besides herself with joy after home affairs was able sort out her problem after more than 10 years following the intervention of Parliament’s portfolio head on cooperative governance and traditional affairs Faith Muthambi.
“When I went to receive my ID at Vuwani home affairs after I reported that I had lost one, I realised I was given one with a wrong name and surname. When I registered my complainant to the clerk, she said there is nothing she could do,” she said.
From then on life became hell on earth for the granny.
“Since there was nothing I could do, I sought work as a domestic worker. But there came the time that I realised I was old and could no longer do the work. At the same time when I applied for elderly person’s grant using the same ID, she was told the ID belonged to another person,” said Manganyi yesterday.
She is a happy person following the visit to home by parliament’s portfolio head on home affairs Mosa Chabane and Muthambi.
Although they were not contacted, Manganyi was in possession of a letter from home affairs that stated that after she had reported her ID, her number was mistakenly changed and the new one corresponded with that of another person.
“It can also be confirmed that the mistake has been rectified and MS Manganyi‘s finger prints are registered in the database of home affairs,” said the home affairs letter.
The granny says she thanks local community leader Edward Chauke who brought her plight to the attention of the MP Muthambi.
After failing to assist her following the visit to different government offices, Chauke inboxed Muthambi on Facebook and she responded. “I knew that Muthambi has always been a hard working person and even when she was a minister she was not afraid to visit rural villages,” said Chauke who said his faith was repaid when Muthambi came up trumps.
He said the woman’s plight touched him so much.
“Without an ID there was very little she could do. She could not vote and there was no job she could do except as a domestic worker and I was very touched by her plight,” he said.
One of her main huts has collapsed but she could not qualify for an RDP house because of the ID problem. She could also not receive any food parcels because she had no ID of a bona fide South African.
She has a last say: “I am very happy that very important people took time to attend to my problem. I wish God should bless them.”
There was nothing to eat but already social workers had visited her home to make arrangements that she be provided with food parcels.