Cape Town flower seller's hopes for the nation wilt ahead of Sona

As President Cyril Ramaphosa prepared to deliver the 2019 state of the nation address on Thursday, Cape Town flower seller Faldelah Dixon said her hopes for the country were wilting.

Dixon, who lost her job when the textile industry imploded, inherited a family flower business in Adderley Street 15 years ago. But she says things have not been rosy since supermarkets started selling flowers.

The 59-year-old delivered her "state of the suburb" address at her stall in the CBD.Her suburb, Hanover Park, is a microcosm of the social ills bedevilling the nation, and Dixon described it as a ticking time bomb.

"Housing is one of the major problems," she said. "There are a lot of people living in backyards and most are unemployed.

"There are many children who have dropped out of school and they get recruited into gangs. There is a big drug problem, housebreaking, shooting and a lack of policing. You can imagine what can come out of such a concoction."

She said roads in her community were in an appalling state after a contractor abandoned them "for months" because of violence. Yet Dixon said she watched roads in the CBD being rejuvenated within a month.

"As it is the state of the nation address today, I appeal to the president to please see to it that there is enough policing in our community – not just in Hanover Park but right around the peninsula. We want visible policing like the rich suburbs have."

She praised the government for the "healthy state of public hospitals".

"I receive good service from my local hospital for whatever ailments I have. I can recommend that the government should provide the hospitals with more doctors."

However, she was appalled by corruption "involving figures of money that I cannot even write down".

She said: "A number of high-ranking people have been named in corrupt activities. Huge amounts of government money have been lost to these activities.

"I am appealing to the president to deal with the corruption properly. Everyone involved, no matter who they are, must be treated the same and face the music. The houses and Mercedes-Benzes they have bought must be taken and sold, and the money should be used to build houses for the poor."

Dixon said she was worried about the weak economy and what it meant for her six children’s futures. She spends 12 hours a day at her stall but takes home only enough to put food on the table.

"The flower business has been in my family for generations, but it is slowly fading with time. People can barely afford to buy flowers these days. We also have competition from the supermarkets. People can buy flowers on their accounts," she said, adding that some rose and protea farms had shut down.