Phoenix dad’s daily struggle to survive

WITH only R10 in his pocket, a Phoenix father does not know where his family’s next meal will come from.

The father of two, who wished to remain anonymous, is one of 30 million South Africans living below the poverty line of R441 per person per month.

These shocking statistics have emerged after the release of Statistics SA’s “Poverty Trends” report, examining poverty between 2006 and 2015.

The report shows the most vulnerable to poverty in society are children aged 17 or younger, those living in rural areas and persons with little or no education.

The 40-year-old, who lives in a council flat in Westham, said every day was a struggle to survive.

“I had to leave school at the age of 15 to find a job to help support my mother who was ill, and my younger sister, after my father died of a heart attack. Since then I have been doing odd jobs like cleaning gardens and washing cars.”

The man said, with basically no education or any other training, this was all he could do, but things started to look up when he was 25.

“One of the residents who lived near the home I was doing work at, offered me a job at his supermarket. He paid me R1 000 a month. I was able to buy food for my mom and sister. I also started working as a cashier in another supermarket.”

The man met his future wife at the age of 27 and a year later they were married.

“My wife was working for a clothing factory in Phoenix and she was earning about R3 000 a month. She also left school early, but she had a skill. Things were going well. My sister also married and left home.”

The man said his mother’s health deteriorated and she died in 2010.

“The following year things got even more difficult; the supermarket I was working in closed down and later that year my wife was retrenched.”

Since 2011, the couple have not been able to get proper jobs.

“My wife irons and cleans for people while I do odd jobs. Sometimes we don’t even have enough food and we rely on the generosity of our neighbours,” he said.

“The council flat we live in was given to my mother. We pay for water and electricity. There have been times when we could not pay our bills.”

He said his children, aged 12 and 10, received a meal from their school so they don’t go hungry.

“I still want a better life for my family and I am hoping things will get better.”