Public, Private partnership was at work in Walmer Township Area Q when Avbob Mutual Assurance Society donated R50 000 worth of building material and blankets to shack fire victims on Wednesday, August 7, 2019.
This follows the fires that ravaged the informal settlement, leaving more than 100 people without shelter. Ever since the fire incident, the victims have been accommodated in a local church hall. A number of Non-Government Organisations (NGOs), municipality disaster management sub-directorate and companies have been donating items like clothing and food.
Speaking at the handover event on behalf of Nelson Mandela Bay’s Executive Mayor Mongameli Bobani, Mayoral Committee Member for Human settlements Andile Mfunda thanked the company for the generosity.
“Nelson Mandela Bay Municipality would like to commend Avbob for playing a vital role in building our societies. As human settlements, it is our responsibility to restore the dignity of our residents by providing houses. The backlog that we facing is huge, it will take time for us to cover everyone, contributions like the one received today is invaluable”.
Mfunda said: “As you rebuild your shacks, please make sure that you open spaces in between for easy access for emergency services like fire trucks, ambulances and police. There must be spaces in between shacks to avoid fires spreading quickly to other shacks”.
Councillor Mfunda also informed the residents that he has already had a meeting with the MEC for Human Settlements, Mr Madikizela about the challenges of housing in Nelson Mandela Bay. “The MEC has promised that the City will be prioritised as it has the biggest backlog.
Avbob Area Manager Mongezeleli Siziba said: “We are celebrating 100 years as a mutual assurance society that is predominantly led by black people as compared to pre-1994. We pride ourselves with serving our societies because some of us were raised in the informal settlements, therefore, we understand your plight and we want to assure you that we will always be available when there is a need. With our donation, we hope it will play a vital role in restoring your dignity. I urge you to use them in building warm homes for your children.”
One of the beneficiaries Mavis Dyaneli said she was grateful and touched that Avbob has decided to lend a hand when they were in need. “I am greatful, we will finish up building our shacks because most of us couldn’t afford to buy building materials, we are still recovering from this whole trauma and we don’t have all the necessary documents,” said Dyaneli.
NMB Communications
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