Joseph Mona, who suffered one of the worst forms of degradation and humiliation at the hands of his former racist employers when he was forced to drink water scooped from the sewer, is still battling ill health and needs to raise funds to pay for a second operation that will improve the quality of his life.
Mona’s plight was brought to the attention of the Sunday Independent by the EFF’s PR councilor at the City of Ekurhuleni, Fani Sibeko, who was concerned about his health.
According to Sibeko, even after the Leicesters claimed they did not have the amount they were ordered to pay in cash, the compensation was broken down into instalments of R12 500 for 20 months, they still would not pay and appealed to the Human Rights Court. He foresees further delays because of lockdown regulations which could be detrimental to his health.
“Doctors have suggested that he needs a second surgery because currently, he uses things like pads or small napkins that he wears for support. We need someone to help us do some crowd-funding. If there are medical experts who are willing to do that, it would be great but they must know we don’t have money,” says Sibeko.
Mona says the infection caused by the faeces he was forced to ingest in December 2017 is still affecting his internal organs and he passes bloodied stools. He adds that he sometimes has no control over his motions and is forced to wear adult nappies.
When the Sunday Independent visited Mona in Daveyton where he was visiting, the 39-year-old was battling to do simple things like sit down without asking for a pillow to cushion him before relaying the heart-wrenching tale that changed his life forever.
“Ke jelwe ke diboko (the worms have devoured me ,“he said, explaining why he could not sit properly, adding that after ingesting a litre of the toxic water, he was thrown into a septic tank full of sewage.
“Because of that, it’s been difficult for me to go to the toilet because it is painful. I bleed a lot at random times or would have water seep through.
“I have sores that have grown both internally and externally that severely itch and when they scratch, it seems like they grow some more,” says Mona with teary eyes.
Mona says surgery was performed in 2018 but that seemed to only partially relieve his physical ailments, while the rest of his health deteriorated to such an extent that he often felt like ending his life.
“I can’t fend for myself. I have no income and just when I thought the case was over, an appeal was lodged and that now prolongs my chances of healing as I have to face these three evil people again and again.
The three evil people that Mona is referring to are the Leicesters – Harry, 57, his wife Maria, 53, and their son Chris, 31, who were each handed a 10-year prison sentence for attempted murder and two years for crimen injuria after they were found guilty of the racist incident in the Springs Regional Court in December 2017.
Over and above the prison sentences, the court ordered that the family pay R250000 towards Mona’s living expenses, but that money still hasn’t been paid four years after the incident because they have appealed against the decision.
“My life has been reduced to nothingness as now I survive on begging people for basics. My mother is unemployed and lives in an RDP house that I wanted to renovate for her with the little I made off that farm. That is why I held on for so long,” he says.
“I was abused a lot at that farm. Any tiny mistake, I was beaten up for it and was often called names, especially the ‘K word’ when my employers were not happy with my work.”
The Sunday Independent