COMMUNITY CRIES AND COLLECTIVE HOPE ECHO IN UMHLABUYALINGANA

Cuma Pantshwa

• ⁠The community urgently needs services and support, as evidenced by the large turnout and long queues for Home Affairs and SASSA services.
• ⁠Elderly citizens raised heartfelt concerns about their safety, neglect, and dependence on social grants, highlighting intergenerational unemployment and vulnerability.
• ⁠The initiative revealed the community’s challenges and resilience, emphasizing the need for continuous support beyond one-day events.

“When you look around this hall and see how full it is here—and how many more are standing outside receiving on-site services—it’s clear: our people are in need,” Councillor Thabisile Manzini remarked, observing the deeply emotional and revealing engagement in uMhlabuyalingana.
Outside, the queues still stretched in front of the Department of Home Affairs mobile truck and the SASSA stands—mothers with babies on their backs, elderly people leaning on walking sticks, some in wheelchairs, and young people in school uniforms. Their presence spoke volumes: this wasn’t just a gathering but a reflection of reality.
Before Minister of Social Development Ms Sisisi Tolashe could take to the podium for her keynote address, the stories of the people had already filled the space—with pleas, praise, heartbreak, and hard truths. The programme was warm and hopeful yet grounded in the lived experiences of a community burdened by poverty, violence, and neglect.
SASSA Acting CEO, Mr Themba Matlou, reminded the audience of the purpose of the occasion, emphasizing the government’s role in protecting the vulnerable and ensuring that social assistance reaches those who need it most. But it wasn’t the formal speeches from officials that stood out—it was the raw, unfiltered voices of the people of Manguzi under the Umkhanyakude District Municipality that shifted the atmosphere.
Elderly women—guardians of generations—were repeatedly honoured for the invisible work they do to hold families together. Despite the deep social ills plaguing the community—poverty, crime, substance abuse, and gender-based violence—they continue to raise grandchildren and nurture communities with wisdom and cultural tradition.
One elderly woman who took the microphone asked the community to look after the elders and not harm them. She pleaded with officials to investigate how elders are treated in communities. She said their strength should not be mistaken for safety. “We are the ones keeping these homes going. But who protects us?” she asked. Her plea was simple yet piercing. It wasn’t just about her—it was about a generation that feels increasingly invisible, vulnerable, and unprotected.
The pensioner also highlighted their dependency on the social grant: “Because our children are unemployed.”
Traditional leaders also took the stage, their tone solemn and urgent. They spoke of rising abuse and moral decay, including devastating incidents where trusted religious figures violated the very children they were meant to protect. “These men are meant to be role models,” one said bitterly. “But they are hurting our children.” He also highlighted the crisis of unemployment.
Yet amid the pain and the issues raised, there was also gratitude. Community members acknowledged the critical support SASSA and the Department of Social Development provided. “Without the child support grant, we wouldn’t survive.”
Traditional leaders also called for accountability. They warned community members against the misuse of cooperative grants and funding, urging a shift from short-term benefit to long-term sustainability. “Let us not register just to receive grants or funding, but let us work to uplift, to produce and to create a future.”
Chief Tembe called for unity and humanity. “Let us return to being Africans and practise Ubuntu,” he urged.
By the time Minister Tolashe stepped up to deliver her keynote address, the hall had already been transformed—not by décor or protocol, but by the emotional tapestry woven by her people. Their stories became her platform.
More than just a community gathering, the engagement in uMhlabuyalingana reflected the urgency of South Africa’s social reality and the undying resilience of its people.
This Ministerial Outreach Initiative brought services to Manguzi residents as part of SASSA’s Integrated Community Registration and Outreach Programme (ICROP) during Child Protection Month.