Stern warning to people who neglect children

Chief Enos Mukhuba, one of the traditional leaders at Khubvi outside Thohoyandou, has sent a stern warning to people who neglect their children that they will not be shown any mercy.

Mukhuba's warning comes amidst the abduction of a five-year-old girl after her parents allegedly failed to pay the man who worked for them.

The incident happened in Khubvi last year but was kept under wraps until community leaders were tipped off by concerned members of the community. The girl, who cannot be named, was supposed to have started Grade R this year but could not.

Chief Mukhuba said he heard about the incident last year and had been trying to persuade the father of the child to pay the amount that he owed the man for the girl's release. "What I know about the incident is that the father employed a Zimbabwean guy to make bricks for him but failed to pay his salary of R1 400. He kept promising the guy his money and the case was also brought to us to adjudicate, but he still did not pay. The matter was then taken to the police, but he still refused to pay. The last time, it is said, the man told the guy to go and fetch the money from his wife at home, but when the man arrived, he did not find any money and that was when he took the child away," he said.

Mukhuba said they condemned the use of children as payment of debts. "How can a father keep quiet while his daughter has been missing for eight months? We will deal decisively with such parents who do not care," he said.

He thanked the local structures who, on hearing about the child 's ordeal, collected money and sent a man to fetch the child from Zimbabwe.

Ms Annah Netshishivhe, chairperson of the local Sanco at Khubvi, said the whole episode had been kept away from them, but when they learnt about it, they sprang into action. "We called all structures in the village for a meeting and it was decided that the matter be taken as urgent. We started to collect the cash and, luckily, one of our members gave us R3 000, and our delegate came back with the child after two days," she said.

She said they were worried because the baby came back with so many bruises all over her body, and she had to be taken to the premises of the Thohoyandou Victim Empowerment Programme, who immediately put her in their trauma centre.

Date:23 January 2015

By: Elmon Tshikhudo

Elmon Tshikhudo started off as a photographer. He developed an interest in writing and started submitting articles to local as well as national publications. He became part of the Limpopo Mirror family in 2005 and was a permanent part of the news team until 2019.

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