It’s 2017 and Tobias Gumede has electricity in his home at last! This Friday he switched on the fridge he bought many years ago – and it worked!
He’s here:
Here’s a pic of his home the last time I saw it:
and a close-up of his environment:
A pre-paid meter has been installed and his wife Thulisiwe will top up her electricity card at the store a few km away, or on her trips to Jozini village.
Hats off to Thulisiwe! Imagine raising seven kids over twenty years before getting running water a few years ago – and now electricity! Here she is with Tobias and five of the kids. In the background as always:
And now they have ugesi, isiZulu for electricity.
Celebration called for!
~~~oo0oo~~~
In 2019 he had a room added on the left side of the house as you see it in the pics. Then he bought a new fridge in Pinetown and had the store deliver it to the bus stop. The bus driver said ‘Sure, R60’ (his ticket was R130); then ‘No, not on top, INSIDE!’ So they fitted the fullsize fridge inside the bus and off Tobias went to Jozini. There he unloaded it and found one of his homies nearby who needed money and had a wheelbarrow. They loaded it up, he pushed while Tobias balanced it for the last few kilometres on the sandy road to his umuzi.
Thulisiwe was delighted, he says.
~~~oo0oo~~~
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