Children removed from PMB home on suspicion of neglect

The department also believes the children have been living in undesirable conditions.

Officials say a team of social workers were dispatched to the home in the Maqeleni area in Edendale on Sunday after a video of the children started making the rounds on social media.

The department’s spokesperson Mhlaba Memela says social workers were told by neighbours that the children would often go without food for days and were left without supervision.

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Memela says the children, aged one and four, would also allegedly be seen wandering on the roads alone in the early hours of the morning.

"They found these children in a very horrible situation, residing in a house that had nothing - no electricity, no water no nothing. 

"So then the department took a decision to rescue the children and remove the children and they took they to a place of safety. 

"These children have one mother, but the department is still going to engage with her and understand what has led to this situation."