BONGILE Ncede doesn’t feel a thing when rats feast on his legs.
The 23-year-old from Kosovo squatter camp in Cape Town was paralysed in March after being shot. As a result he no longer has any feeling in his legs.
“I don’t feel anything in my lower body. I am afraid these rats are going to eat me until I am dead,” he said.
Bongile’s mum, Lizeka Ncede (52), washes and changes him but is too sick to give her son all the care he needs.
She said she cannot stand to see the rats biting her son.
“I am unable to chase them away when they are biting him because I am sick and find it difficult to walk.
“The fact that I can’t help my son is killing me. I can’t even eat. I need help,” said the mum.
The rodents bite only Bongile, which is why Lizeka believes they were sent by somebody who wants to torment her son.
“Whether it’s day or night, the rats always come out of hiding to bite my son.
“I don’t think these are normal rats. It looks as if they were sent to cause pain to my son. This must be witchcraft.”
Social development spokeswoman Esther Lewis said social workers paid Lizeka a visit, made an assessment and formulated an intervention plan.
She said: “The department will help the man apply to a home where his physical needs can be addressed.
“The ward councillor along with a resident will visit the family on a bi-weekly basis.
“The house in question, as well as 48 other households in the area, was decontaminated.
“There will also be a follow-up inspection,” Lewis said.
