A city sex worker also said business was bad.
A group of homeless people in Marabastad said they usually received a lot of donations, but this December things were tough. In addition, Zimbabwean women who are part of the group said they did not even receive gifts for their toddlers this year. The women, who asked not to be named, have children younger than 5 years and said they feared the government could one day try to take away their little ones.
“Maybe in other areas other homeless people received gifts, but here we did not receive any this year. Normally there are some women who come here and give us a lot of things for our children. They did not come this year,” one of them said.
They said they were able to care for their children and buy nappies and food because they knew how to fend for themselves. They were able to take the children to local clinics when they fell ill and at times people gave them medication.
Another woman, a sex worker, said: “We do not get a lot of things from people this time of the year because there is not a lot of people in the city.
"There have been fewer people since the week of December 16. Business has also been very bad due to the fact that people have gone on holiday,” she said.
However, she said she would not go to places like churches where they gave away donations because she felt there were other deserving people.
“I feel like there are children, especially young boys, who do not have anything to eat and no means of making money. If anyone is giving things, they must give to those kids.”
David Ramphekwa, who begs at the intersection of Thabo Sehume and Nana Sita streets, said: “I am not making money here anymore. I will come back again in January when people start going back to work.”
Ramphekwa said he slept on the side of Nana Street, but would not say how he was going to survive in the meantime.
Motorists who know Ramphekwa can probably remember him as the man who always wears a worn-out blanket over his shoulders.
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