Johannesburg - Questions regarding the compensation of victims of the Vantage Goldfields Lily Mine collapse and their families remain unanswered more than six months after the tragedy.
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The families of Pretty Nkambule, Yvonne Mnisi and Solomon Nyerende were promised R200 000 each after a section of the mine near Barberton in Mpumalanga caved in on February 5, trapping the mineworkers in a container which lies 80m underground.
The trio have not been recovered.
Minister of Mineral Resources Mosebenzi Zwane told the community and the families of the trio and survivors of the disaster that they would be compensated.
Zwane had said: “We will compensate the surviving miners R50 000, and the families of the three will receive R200 000 each.”
He added that the money was not enough to compensate the families and miners for the pain and suffering they had gone through.
However, families of the trio have now accused Zwane of backtracking on the promise he made. “We marched to the offices of Zwane last week and he didn’t want to see us.
“We went there to deliver our memorandum with our demands and also wanted to know what happened to the promise he made,” said Christopher Mazibuko, Nkambule’s husband.
Nkambule left four children.
Mazibuko said his family’s financial situation was bad since the mine closed down.
The families, led by the Association of Mineworkers and Construction Union (Amcu), marched to the departmental offices in Pretoria to demand answers and see the minister.
Amcu president Joseph Mathunjwa said Zwane had agreed to meet with them, the families and the surviving mineworkers to receive their memorandum. However, he failed to do so.
Mathunjwa accused Zwane of back-pedalling on his promises. “People who we put into power have forgotten about us while they sit on fancy chairs in air-conditioned offices,” he said about Zwane.
The Star's sister paper, Pretoria News, unsuccessfully tried to get an explanation from the department about the promised compensation.
Departmental spokesman Mandla Madlala failed to respond to enquiries, citing the sensitivity of a document which contained information that arose from consultation between the department, the mine and Amcu.
However, Lily Mine distanced itself from the promise.
THE STAR