Volunteer in tears after 10 years of sowing

Low-skilled workers are increasingly falling victim to the Covid-era unemployment spike. A loss of income for the most vulnerable amongst us, places many below the breadline, and further strains a struggling social grants safety net. In order to combat unemployment, many are working on initiatives to try to earn an income in an honest way. However, for some, stumbling blocks are too often encountered.
In a recent incident, Zimbabwean National, Pediasa Ncube, a gardener and resident of Itireleng informal settlement, was left reeling after being forcibly barred from his beloved garden, at the Laudium Community Health Centre. A disgruntled Pediasa said, “I volunteered at the Laudium Community Health Centre for over ten years without pay. When I first started there, the soil was not conducive for planting anything.”
A passionate volunteer gardener, Pediasa explored various options to transform the barren Laudium Community Health Centre grounds into fertile land. He said, “I had to look for sponsors to help clean the soil and make it suitable for harvesting.” He found a local ‘Good Samaritan’ during his outreach efforts, and shared, “I remember when an Indian guy from Laudium helped us with R3000 to buy fertilizer so that we could plant there.” Pediasa’s efforts paid off, and the garden produced marketable plants through the years. A reciprocal arrangement with the Laudium Community Health Centre Manager saw Pediasa eke out a meagre living off the garden, by selling low-cost fresh produce, especially to the Health Centre visitors, and also giving free vegetables to malnourished, unemployed patients, in exchange for tending the area.
For a decade, this garden became the only source of income to sustain his family. In a surprising turn of events, Pediasa is now barred from entering the premises. “I went through so much for ten years to create a workable garden that produces edible food, which helps the Health Centre patients as well. Suddenly, after all this time, they turned on me and kicked me off the grounds.” Pediasa lamented, “I experienced racism and discrimination at the same Health Centre I volunteered at for a decade. Earlier this month, they called the police to prevent me from accessing the grounds.”
Pediasa said he was shocked to hear that he had been accused of starting an altercation with a Health Centre visitor. “I was told that an unknown White man claimed that I wanted to fight with him, but this is not true. I think that this was an excuse to get me away from the premises because they wanted to exploit my hard work and the garden that I created out of nothing. I have no idea what I am going to do now. This is an absolute abuse of power and shows zero concern for the welfare of needy people.”
Pediasa, being a foreign national, does not have a support structure to counter such economic shocks, and adds to the growing number of Covid-era economic victims, unless an amicable solution is reached between him and the Laudium Community Health Centre, soon.
After dedicating a decade to a lovingly cared-for garden, then being forced off the grounds, a despondent Pediasa said,
“All of this is very painful to me.”
Nancy Nkopana, the Operational Manager of the Laudium Community Health Centre confirmed, “I have received a report of the dispute with the gardener, who is a volunteer. We are dealing with it as an internal matter.”

Itireleng resident and Zimbabwean national Pediasa Ncube, a volunteer gardener at Laudium Community Health Centre, said he felt betrayed by the clinic.