Fire deepens family�s troubles
Nnasaretha Kgamanyane | Friday October 17, 2014 15:19
It was late in the evening when we arrived at the Mangole family home at Matamoreng ward in Mochudi. Members of the family were seated near their burnt two-roomed house. A few meters away from the house were burnt mattresses taken out of the house during the fire on that fateful day.
Salome Mangole and the children waited patiently for the Mmegi team.
Upon arrival, they offered their chairs; three plastic, one broken. The old woman smiled as she offered two of the ‘good’ chairs while exchanging greetings.
She joined the children sitting on the blanket. The children watched with excitement and expectant eyes as they too smiled at the Mmegi team.
After her parents passed away, Mangole was left with some of her siblings who also passed away and left her with their children. She, however, has no children of her own, but is raising her sibling’s offspring some of whom moved after getting married.
For the nine family members life has never been easy after Mangole, the breadwinner, retired from her job as a grinder.
“Dumelang bagaetsho. Ke fela jaaka le re bona. I remember that fateful Monday when I was from my uncle’s place because there were wedding preparations. When I came back, I went to my sister’s house where I saw this boy come running, crying out that the house was on fire,” the woman in her 50s said, as she pointed out the young boy who was leaning on her shoulder.
She said she was surprised and shocked when she heard the news and rushed to the house where she found that indeed the house was in flames.
With the help of neighbours, they managed to put out the fire. Unfortunately, everything in the house perished leaving the family vulnerable.
The walls were covered in black from the smoke. It smelt of fire that also ravaged the doors and windows. The floor was covered with melted plastic and other materials that had stuck to it.
“Everything that I have worked for our clothes, furniture, food and kitchen utensils are gone. They were engulfed in the fire. These children have nothing to wear. Their school uniforms and clothes were burnt. The only clothes we have are the ones that we were wearing that day,” Mangole said.
Even though the family was given accommodation by a relative, Mangole said after the incident, they slept in the burnt house. That situation was not healthy for the seven children the poor woman stays with, as the youngest was a few months old. All of the children are aged less than 14.
“We only go to my cousin’s house at night to sleep because he insisted that we sleep over as it is not safe to sleep here,” she added.
She, however, pointed out that the family spends most of the day at their yard, where they cook and bath during the day as they feel that they have to give her cousin and his family space and privacy.
“Tota nnete ke gore gaabo motho go thebe phatshwa. Re bona gole botlhokwa gore re nne mo lwapeng re seka ra le tlogela ekete matlotla (As the saying goes home will always be home therefore it is important that we stay there and not leave it empty),” said Mangole.
Mangole added that after the incident, they reported the matter to councillor Botlhe Kgetsi who called the council for assistance.
She said that they were given groceries that included 12.5 kg of maize meal, 10 kg sorghum, two packets of beans and other items. She said that the food was not enough to sustain the family.
“The council also gave us four blankets, while Kgetsi gave us two more and toiletry. After that, we have never seen the social workers or our councillor. The council promised to paint our house but unfortunately they have not come back here,” she added.
Some of the good Samaritans in the community offered Mangole and the children clothes. However, the clothes were not enough and suitable for all the climate conditions.
She also mentioned that among the burnt goods was her niece’s Smart Switch Botswana card for food rations that sustained the family’s feeding needs.
Even though the family depended on the card for monthly food security, Mangole pointed out that even the ration food was not enough to feed the whole family for a month. She said that things worsened after she retired.
The old woman appealed to Batswana for help. She said that even though she knows that Kgetsi might have not checked up on them lately, he may be busy with campaigns due to the upcoming elections. The situation, she said, is too painful to bear.
She added that she was going to seek help at the Office of the President as the food they were given was finished.
Mangole said that even though she would like to get a temporary job at Ipelegeng, she cannot do so as she has to take care of her niece’s infant as there is no one else to look after the child.