dyton mupawaenda
Precious Manomano Herald Reporter
SOCIETY should revise its attitude towards the elderly so that they freely enjoy their rights as enshrined in the Constitution, a Government official has said.
Speaking during commemorations of the Older Persons Day in Harare last Friday, deputy director of coordination in the office of the Minister of State for Provincial Affairs and Devolution in Harare Metropolitan, Mr Benedict Mubaiwa, who was representing the Minister, Charles Tavengwa, urged the public to respect the elderly.
“Many times social media are awash with reports of some older persons being abused, deprived of care and support or denied their basic rights. Some had their homes sold, leaving them destitute.
“Some had their hard earned investments foolishly spent by their relatives leaving them vulnerable and some are labelled witches. These atrocities should be condemned in the strongest terms and perpetrators should be brought to book. The elderly deserve protection, love and care,” she said.
Older persons are supported by the Older Person Board established under the Ministry of Public Service, Labour and Social Welfare.
It is responsible for coming up with policy recommendations on matters that affect the welfare of the elderly.
Ministry of Public Service, Labour and Social Welfare’s provincial social welfare officer, Mrs Susan Ngani, said ageing is a process so the younger generation should learn to love and respect the elderly.
“These people have made you what you are today. It is the responsibility of the younger generation to take care of these people. They are not witches; if they are witches, they could have bewitched you the day they conceived you, so let us remove that bad spirit among us, we have to respect them.
“Some of the people we see in old people’s homes are not supposed to be there. We should love and protect them but unfortunately the love they expect from us is no longer there,” she said.
Older people from different homes in Harare said they face negative perceptions from close relatives which affect their lives.
Ms Maria Baureni from Highfield said it is disheartening to see close relatives neglecting them.
“Relatives say we are witches because of old age. We are humans We need love and protection but we encounter difficult situations. It is not fair to be neglected by family members,” she said.
Mr Regis Lobengula from Epworth said the Government should intervene to ensure that they get free health care and treatment.
‘’We are always neglected because we are older. We need assistance from our family members. So we appeal to the Government to intervene to ensure that we live a normal life like other people,” he said.
The United Nations indicated that in 2021 the population of the aged would double from 761 million to 16 billion by 2050.
Globally babies born in 2022 were expected to have a life expectancy of 71,7 years on average, which is 25 years longer than the average for those born in 1950.
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