New home for baby abandoned next to Cullinan railway line

The 2-month-old baby who was found abandoned next to a railway line in Cullinan, east of Pretoria, has found a new home.

Linda Hleza owns a children's home in Pretoria.

She said the baby was brought into her care on Saturday afternoon.   

She has since named the child Kamva, which means future.

"I named him Kamva, because I believe he will one day be someone important in the world – maybe even a president,” she said, adding that she had set up the home in 2012. Hleza cared for six children.

She said the children were aged 13, 10, 3 and 2. She also cared for a 1-and-a-half month old baby.

In addition, Hleza had four children of her own - the eldest of whom had helped her to set up the home.

Abandoned

On Saturday, police spokesperson Constable Connie Moganedi said two males aged between 17 and 22 approached Cullinan police, carrying the infant.

“The males reported that they found an infant, wrapped with a baby blanket, lying on his stomach, next to the railway line," said Moganedi. Police are investigating a case of child neglect.

Hleza said it had been very painful for her to hear that Kamva had been left at the railway.

"I wondered how long the baby was at the railway line and what could have happened if no one had seen him,” she said.

Hleza said parents who did not want their children should consider taking them to the police or the clinic instead of abandoning them.

"When I first started the home, I saw a need in the community, I noticed that a lot of children were suffering especially those [who were neglected by their parents] – so I took a leap of faith and used a house that I was renting to start a home for children.”

She said it was her love for children that had driven her to open the home.

Anyone with information can contact Constable Monagedi on 079 6951388.

Source: News24