Zuma's Village
KwaNxamalala in the Nkandla district may be the home of
SA’s first citizen and the flashy cars and blue lights that accompany him when
he visits, but at its core its people remain dirt poor.
Unlike President Jacob Zuma’s own homestead, which
recently got a R65 million upgrade funded by taxpayers, the rural town itself,
50km away, is a sparsely populated, one-street marketplace. It consists of a
supermarket, a social welfare office, a tavern and some struggling vendors.
Nkandla town’s aesthetic is so low-key, so bereft of
modern city trappings, that it makes a town like Mthatha look like a First World
metropolis.
The children walk long distances to school and many
residents have no electricity, relying on wood fires to cook.
Although many roads in the KwaNxamalala area have been
upgraded, road P50, which leads to Zuma’s homestead, is riddled with potholes.
Zuma’s own KwaNxamalala
faction and touted as the first “small town” ever to be built by the SA
government after 1994.
Amid accusations that KwaNxamalala is receiving
preferential treatment, the project will see vast tracts of land expropriated
for the construction of modern homes, a shopping mall, a college, banking
facilities and other amenities.
Following the project’s launch last week, a sod-turning
event is planned for next month. It will herald the development many hope will
change the face of the greater Nkandla area forever.
“Why has he decided to look after Nkandla alone and not
other areas? It shows favouritism. Maybe he wants to retire in his own small
town one day.
“The next question is whether the president is not going
to benefit personally from the project.”
It was reported in November that a company contracted by
the public works department to do construction work on Zuma’s homestead,
Bonelena Construction Enterprise and Projects, had the president’s niece on its
payroll.
Additions to the homestead include three sets of
underground living quarters with about 10 air-conditioned rooms, reported the
Mail & Guardian. Other facilities include a clinic for Zuma and his family,
a gymnasium, 20 houses for security guards, underground parking, a helicopter
pad, playgrounds and a visitors’ centre.
Bhekumuzi Zuma, the leader of the Nxamalala clan in
Nkandla, laughed off the notion that Nkandla was receiving preferential
treatment.
The chief, who drives a gleaming green Audi A4 and is a
blood relative of Zuma, said, “Msholozi is everywhere, he goes to every
province. The Masakhane project that he introduced goes everywhere in the
country. At the same time, it also does not mean that just because we are from
Nkandla, we should not see development… There are no jobs, scores of people are
just sitting idle.”
Nkandla is derived from the verb “khandla”, meaning to
tire or exhaust. According to the local council’s website, it came about after
Zulu king Shaka went to resolve a dispute in the area and when he arrived he
claimed he was exhausted.
Phumelele Mhlongo, who sells an assortment of pinafores
and women’s underwear in the town, says life is tough.
A mother of three adults aged between 20 and 26, none of
whom have found work, she says lost her husband to an illness four years ago.
“Things are bad. You sometimes sit here the whole day
without anyone buying. But we still have to support our children,” said Mhlongo.
“Sometimes, we end up going to loan sharks just so we can
raise money to buy something to sell.
“We would like the government to train us and build
stalls, sponsor us with some money so we can sell properly.”
Weekend Argus
All of this while most black South Africans live in tin shacks.