I was going to write about the R460 billion which our out-of-control Eskom has sort of lost, given away or just plain wasted. And a few more hundreds of mere millions suddenly discovered missing from Government and Provincial and Municipal agencies and contracts (Durban amongst them). This is just the equivalent, I suppose, of around 150 hospitals, a few score thousand properly paid doctors, a couple of hundred new schools, a couple of hundred thousand university fees.
Perhaps even some properly, honestly built low-cost houses for the homeless. But as someone recorded about Nazi Germany, even the worst of evils acquires a certain banality and South Africa's biggest industry - officials and politicians stealing money from the poor - is no exception. So I am going to tell you about a few people in Brisbane who shared an idea that would help others. And how this little group grew. And now the idea is walking, moving, accelerating internationally. The idea was to do something for the estimated 100 000 homeless people in Australia. Schoolteacher and spare-time welfare worker Jean Madden went to work on it when she saw a television documentary on the mental and physical health problems caused by the destitute sleeping rough. She designed a roll-up-roll-out bed with a thin high-density waterproof mattress built into it and surrounded it with a special tight-weave canvas that takes a permanent waterproofing coating.
The canvas protects a layer of insulation. Inside this package are pockets built-in for personal possessions. Most important, she decided, it must not look like a bed when carried by a homeless person looking for work. Jean's design folds and rolls up into a compact bag with a shoulder sling for carrying. It weighs just over two kilos and costs about $A60 (R400) to make. Its cost is subsidised by prisons whose inmates have volunteered to help make the bags. Kids put in hours of work after school to assemble and pack the bags - and make hygiene bags to include with them. Tested by Brisbane's homeless, the swagman's bed enables you to sleep in it on cement or concrete or wet ground with less risk of pneumonia or arthritic rheumatism in the nights between looking for food and a future. And it will keep the rain off.
During the day, while you try to get work and enough coins to put something in your belly, it looks inconspicuous in its camping gear colours. Over twelve thousand have already been distributed to people who need them urgently. Not-for-profit distribution and extra manufacturing points supported by public donation campaigns to pay costs have been established throughout Australia. World welfare authorities have acclaimed this schoolteacher's invention and it is being taken up internationally. The Salvation Army and Wesleyan missions, for instance, are adopting the swagbag as a vital aid to relief for the homeless.It has won the People's Choice Award in the world's largest design awards - the Index Awards in Denmark. So the little Brisbane schoolteacher with the big heart looks like doing more for the homeless of the world than most of our politicians have achieved even in, say, Blikkiesdorp. She has been interviewed by many journalists but for some reason has never thought it necessary to take out large, expensive press advertisements congratulating herself on her achievements. We could do with a lot more people like Jean Madden.
GREAT RECIPES FROM MY FAVOURITE WELFARE MAGAZINE: MARIE CLARE:
Polenta and Courgettes Salad with a blue cheese dressing: For 4. Get together: 75g mealie meal. 10g butter. 6 courgettes, sliced on the diagonal. 3 tbs sunflower oil. 2 tbs blue cheese. 4 tbs canola oil. 1 tbs red wine vinegar. 150g baby spinach leaves. Pre-heat the oven to 200C. Bring 350ml of salted water to boil in a large saucepan. Slowly pour in the mealie meal and stir until it thickens and begins to draw away from the sides of the saucepan. Stir in the butter then remove from heat. Pour the polenta on to a flat plate or tray until 1cm thick. Allow to cool. Put the courgette slices on a baking tray and brush with a little of the olive oil. Bake until soft and cooked through. Slice the polenta into rectangular chips and place on an oiled tray. Brush the rectangles with a little oil and bake for 10 minutes. Make the blue cheese dressing by combining the blue cheese, canola oil and wine vinegar in a small bowl. Layer the courgettes, polenta and spinach on to four serving plates and drizzle with the dressing.
Goat's (or Blue) Cheese Salad with Celery, Pear and Parsley. For 4. Get together: 1 tbs white wine vinegar. 3 tbs olive or canola oil. 3 celery stalks thinly sliced. 3 pears, cored and thinly sliced. 1 handful flat-leaf Italian parsley, chopped. 25g flaked almonds, toasted. 150g Goat's or blue cheese. Put the vinegar and oil in a large bowl. Season with sea salt and freshly ground black pepper. Stir to combine, then add the celery, pear, parsley and almonds. Toss then pile onto a serving platter. Crumble the cheese over the salad and serve immediately.
Chinese Sesame Beef. For 4. Get together: 500g aged rump steak, thinly sliced. 1 tbs sunflower oil. 1 tsp sesame oil. 2 garlic cloves, finely sliced. 3 tbs hoisin sauce (from Everfresh or supermarkets). 3 tbs rice wine or dry sherry or dry white wine. 1 tbs soft brown sugar. 2 tbs sesame seeds. 250g bean sprouts. 500g washed and thinly sliced baby spinach or young chard. 2 large red chillies, seeded and chopped fine. 1 tbs lemon juice. White rice, steamed or boiled. Put the steak slices in a bowl with the sunflower oil, sesame oil and garlic. Stir well to coat the beef thoroughly. Cover and leave in fridge overnight or for a few hours. Combine the hoisin sauce, wine and brown sugar in a small bowl and stir until the sugar is dissolved. Set aside. Add the beef mixture in batches to a hot wok and stir fry until browned lightly. Remove and set aside. Stir fry the sesame seeds for 1 minute, then add the beef, bean sprouts, spinach and chillies. Toss thoroughly for 1 minute then add the blended sauce. As the sauce begins to bubble, toss a few times then add the lemon juice. Toss once more. Serve with the rice.
