I spend E5 000 on medication for elderly – MP
MBABANE – Phondo Member of Parliament (MP) Bonginkosi Dvuba says he is forced to contribute medication for poverty-stricken elderly of Mankayane.
In an interview, the MP said he has been forced by circumstances to spend money out of his own pocket because of high levels of poverty.
Dvuba said he found himself spending E5 000 monthly on health for the senior citizens.
The MP also lamented the state of the health sector. He said the Mankayane Government Hospital was not spared from the impeding health crisis.
Dvuba said he has mostly provided aid to the elderly who at often times came to him with referral notifications to pharmacies for sought-after medication.
He said he could not sit back and watch people die because of lack of medication from hospitals, hence his benevolence from his own pocket.
He added that, with the high rate of poverty, he has found himself having to be the caretaker of many vulnerable families.
BaSic
Dvuba said he also had a Vusela for the five chiefdoms under the Phondo Inkhundla where he spent about E13 500 while buying basic food parcels for the constituents.
The chiefdoms are Bhadzeni II (Ekhabomntfwana), Lushikishini, Khabonina, Mahhashini and Mgazini.
Moreover, Dvuba said he has been flooded with requests for school fees top-ups.
He said he has a list of some of the families that requested support for school fees.
The legislator said he has paid E15 000 so far from his own pocket since schools opened this year.
The Phondo MP said he did not have much to continue supporting the vulnerable communities, pleading that interventions from the central government were needed.
Dvuba said he was involved in humanitarian work because he was very concerned about the plight of people.
He said he wanted every child to be in school and everyone to get assistance from health centres.
“I do not have a lot of money. I plead for interventions from the Ministry of Health to assist with the provision of medication in health centres and for the Ministry of Education and Training to help pupils who fail to pay their school fees,” he said, adding that his term may end after five years and that if there are no sustainable interventions, the people will continue living in poverty.
BleaK
The MP told this publication that the livelihood situation at Mankayane was a bleak one.
He said among the many challenges, people of Mankayane needed job opportunities and the factory shells could draw investors to create jobs.
He also said many roads were still not tarred, making it hard even for the transport business to thrive.
Dvuba said there was a challenge in accessing clean water.
He also said there are currently no projects funded through the Rural Development Fund (RDF).
He said poverty was high in Mankayane, adding that the visitation by the King would create opportunities for businesses to make more sales on the day.