Letha Ithemba Elisha progresses with assisting addicts to better their lives
By MAMELLO MAILA
The Letha Ithemba Elisha non-profit organisation in Duduza continues to tackle the Nyoape (whoonga) adversity in the community.
Ekurhuleni news met with the President of the organisation, Lucky Kgomo, and the community members who outlined how this drug scourge is destroying their community, on July 24, 2020.
In Mandela month spirit, drug addicts were treated to a warm cooked meal while members of the community received food parcels in an effort of curbing Hunger. Lucky Kgomo stated, that, “The fact that nyaope is unclassified it creates a challenge for the law enforcement Units to apprehend dealers and smokers, but we as the NPO pride ourselves in assisting drug addicts with skills development, rehabilitation and integration in the community.
“We have been operating for a year and a half now and we would like to continue to help those who need it, unfortunately at the moment we have to do everything ourselves and at times it may seem as if there’s no progress, so we are appealing to those who have the means to assist us kindly.
“I would also like to encourage all our stakeholders to become active, especially those involved in social development activities,” says Kgomo.
A recovering drug addict Kopano Ratu said, “Being part of the programme gives me hope, for the future. The youth in the area is hooked to nyaope because it’s cheap and easily accessible and as such, they have become a menace to society. They steal from their homes and neighbours to feed their drug habit. They are also a danger to themselves because they are destroying themselves physically and mentally.
“I joined the organisation because I want to quit this nyaope drug, but it’s hard to do it on your own. Seeing the people who joined before me getting all the help they needed pushed me to also get up and seek help. I have been here for a couple of months, but already I can see a major difference in my life in terms of how the community used to treat me. There’s a change and more people are starting to understand us,” he says.
Another recovering drug user Mfundo Makhubo shared that, “The programme keeps me occupied. What I have learned so far is that keeping yourself busy by doing something productive is good for your mental state and it can help you to avoid bad things such as drugs. Here we wash dustbins every Monday as means of making a bit of pocket money; we also enjoy motivational talks from experts which makes us feel as if we are still part of the community,” Makhubo clarified.
The organisation seeks sponsorship.