• Mbulelo Nkayi, 43, used to earn R300 a day as a bricklayer but now survives on R2,310 monthly after his leg was amputated following a fall.

• His family shares one tub of Vaseline, eats meat only on payday, and stopped visiting their Eastern Cape home because they can’t afford the R800 per person transport.

Mbulelo Nkayi, a 43-year-old man from Khayelitsha township in Cape Town, fell from a roof in 2022, broke his leg, and it was later amputated. He now has an artificial leg.

He was working as a bricklayer earning R300 per day.

“My life changed after the amputation. I started getting a disability grant, which is now R2,310. Before getting injured, I was able to get my family everything. Now we have to buy only basics,” said Nkayi.

He takes care of his wife and four children, who all live with him.

With the disability grant, he buys groceries for R1,700, electricity for R200, and a funeral policy for R90 that covers all his family members.

“I used to buy cosmetics like body lotion, roll-on, spray, and perfume. I can no longer afford those things. Now I buy a big tub of Vaseline for all of us. It lasts a month and it’s the best choice,” said Nkayi.

For groceries, he buys combos that include rice, sugar, maize meal, and cooking oil. He also buys four cabbages a month.

“My kids understand our situation. For now, we can’t buy eggs, polony, or cornflakes. We only buy meat on paydays. During the month, we eat rice with cabbage and soup,” said Nkayi.

They don’t buy tinned food either.

“We used to go home to the Eastern Cape every school holiday, but we’ve stopped because I don’t have money. We used to take a taxi, and at that time it was R800 per person. Sometimes we would buy bus tickets during Black Friday when they were cheap,” he said.

They only buy clothes for their children in December.

He used to spend R6,000 on Christmas clothes but now checks for shops running specials, buying tights for R50 and trousers for R60 for his kids.

“I still have hope that one day I will find a side hustle to help with the money I’m getting. There’s a car wash I just started with my friends. We’ll see how it goes,” said Nkayi.

Despite everything, he remains grateful.

“I am happy that my kids understand my situation and they don’t ask for expensive clothes. They are grateful that we get them something new,” said Nkayi.

Pictured above: Mbulelo Nkayi is taking care of his five family members using disability grant money.

Image source: Supplied