The widows of late pensioners of the National Railways of Zimbabwe (NRZ) are reportedly getting US $2 a month as pension.
NewsDay reports that the widows are getting $1 200 in the local currency. The widows recently engaged the NRZ on the matter and were promised the equivalent of US $18 per month.
Said one of the Widows:
NRZ is taking us for granted, what can one buy with $1 200? It only buys one loaf of bread. Some of us are on medication, and we end up defaulting because we cannot afford it. We cannot take medication on empty stomachs. We are unable to pay council rates, pay for electricity or buy food. We live in abject poverty.
And another said:
We have other members among the NRZ widows who have passed on due to starvation. How can such a big company give widows low pensions like that? They are old people who cannot fend for themselves. Some of these widows are diabetic, or suffer from hypertension and arthritis, among other diseases
Worse still even if old people do not pay fees at public health institutions, there are no drugs there. Widows are forced to buy their medication at pharmacies whose prices are very exorbitant. They are struggling to get food.