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A 77-year-old grandmother of Indian origin is the oldest politician to contest Wednesday's South African local government elections, the second such since the advent of new democracy in the post-apartheid era.
Lutchmyamma Naidoo is contesting the elections for the Independent Democrats (ID), a party headed by the fiery politician Patricia De Lille of Cape Town.
Naidoo, who has three children and 18 grandchildren, will be standing for a seat in the country town of KwaDukuza, about 75km north of Durban. A veteran local community worker, Naidoo is confident of winning.
"I am confident because I am fighting for the people who live in low-cost housing. I want them to get better service delivery and this gives me enough strength to overcome the age factor," said Naidoo, popularly known as 'Botoo' because of the big red dot she wears on her forehead.
"People get surprised when I say I am contesting the elections. But I tell them they need someone who will fight for them and not someone who will use the position to further their own nests," she said.
The local government elections are the second such fully-fledged elections since the advent of the new democracy in 1994. The African National Congress is expected to sweep most of the main cities and urban areas, except for Cape Town where the party is facing stiff opposition from the official opposition, Democratic Alliance.