I feel angry that the Gauteng department of social development can be this mean and inconsiderate.

I feel angry that the Gauteng department of social development can be this mean and inconsiderate.

I have known Eunice Mabaso for a while. When she started her orphanage in 1992 she only had four children. In 1997 the number increased to 15, mostly from the streets and others were Aids orphans.

To date she looks after about 32 children. Social workers visited Mabaso regularly and they decided to stop her from taking in more children because of the size of her house. They advised her to approach the Housing Department to get larger accommodation for all the children.

In 2003 she got a commitment from the Housing Department, which gave her land on which to build Siyakhula Centre in Orange Farm.

Was the department not aware that the orphanage was not registered? Who were they trying to impress by visiting Mabaso and committing themselves to build a centre? What was the criterion for building the centre if it was not registered?

It is one thing to magnify a minor fault that can be easily corrected but quite another to intervene with hidden agendas and ulterior motives.

What is the social development department's motivation? The R3,9million building is due to be completed in March next year, and who will benefit from it?

It is the department's responsibility to make sure the orphanage is registered.

Ann Khatle, Johannesburg