When you enter the one room-shack of Joseph Molahleni in Taiwan informal settlement at Site C it’s hard to believe someone could live in those conditions.
From the outside, you can see into the shack through the many holes in it. And take a closer look inside and you’l see Mr Molahleni seated in chair made of wood.
The house does not have a windows and it seems it’s just a matter of time before it collapses.
The 60-year-old shares the shack with his two children aged 26 and 25, and the only source of income is his temporary disability social grant.
He said he had been living in this dilapidated house for more 10 years and it is only “by the grace of God” that it has not yet collapsed.
“In winter the house would be flooded with water and everything would be wet. When there is window sand gets inside. I have asthma and a person who is sickly like me can’t live in a place like this,” Mr Molahleni told Vukani.
“If I had the means, I would have bought a new structure because this is old. You can clearly see that it can fall at any given time and surely, it would fall on top of me. If it does not kill me, it would be by the grace of the Lord.
“My only request is to get a new structure and I don’t mean a formal house – just a better informal structure. I pray each and every day that someone would be touched by my living conditions and help me,” he said.
Mr Molahleni said at times he feels that he has lost his dignity and integrity.
Community leader, Khayalethu Kama said as the leaders in the area they felt the need to intervene and assist him so that his structure could be improved. He said he was aware that community leaders have some point arranged food parcels for Mr Molahleni, and he hoped that a good Samaritan would help get him a new structure for this family.