Tribulations Of A Zim Migrant Worker In Cape Town

CAPE TOWN: Working on a construction site for Zimbabwean migrant worker David Samukhange (not real name) means that his job begins in the morning at 830am and ends at 430pm.

This sounds pretty normal for the average working man except that for Samukhange it entails back-breaking hard labour where he is on his feet for a continuous eight hours without any rest unless he uses the all-too familiar excuse of needing to use the toilet.

This is never taken lightly either and the white foreman ensures that this very temporary breakaway is timed to the last second. After all he must get as much work as he can out of the hired labourer whom he has not even bothered to ask his name. Tearing down an old building is not an easy task. For the poor Zimbabwean, like others who have literally fled home in search of a better life in other SADC countries, especially South Africa and Botswana, it means the heaving of the inevitable jackhammer in a continuous rhythm against the more than staunch wall.

Editor's Comment
Gov't must guard against cadre deployment

As the Botswana National Front (BNF) discusses a policy to place suitably qualified members in strategic positions, the guiding consideration should remain whether an individual is the best person to serve the country. There is nothing wrong with qualified party members applying for public positions. Political affiliation should neither disqualify a capable candidate nor give them an advantage over others. Every Motswana deserves a fair...

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