TAXI MAN HITS HIGH NOTES Sthembiso Sithole@SITHOLEEXPRESS Forty-six-year-old Jabulani Msibi has had a major transformation in his life. After spending many years as a taxi driver picking and dropping off passengers on the dusty streets of Orange Farm, the huge informal settlement in the Vaal area, Msibi is now a well-known music lecturer and co-coordinator at the Johannesburg Youth Orchestra Music School based at the University of Witwatersrand. Msibi was born in Vryheid, KwaZulu-Natal, and moved to Johannesburg to look for a job. He stayed with relatives in Soweto while his mother was working as a domestic worker. Without a matric, he struggled to find a job, but eventually found work at Music for Pleasure as a record and box collector. But he was not happy with his colleagues were getting promoted while he wasn’t. He had been with the company since 16 years old. In 1989 he decided to back to school as a part-time pupil, but battled to find support from family members, as none of them had a formaleducation and they struggled to understand his passion for getting a quality education. “I stayed with relatives, who took care of me. But neither my mother nor my relatives had any education. They couldn’t help me with my studies. I attended night schools but they didn’t work out for me. I had to make a commitment to go back to school and be a full-time pupil,” Msibi said. After enrolling at Ibhongo High School in Dlamini, Soweto, as a full-time pupil, Msibi worked hard and achieved recognition for his efforts. In 1993 he finally got his matric and saw that he was about to realise his dream. However, life after matric was not easy as he thought..it proved very difficult to find a job. He tried out various employment options before he started saving money to further his studies as a sound engineer. “With the grace of God.” He said that he managed to register at Wits for a Bachelor of Music in Education in 1995. He dropped out, however,after finishing his second year, because he did not have sufficient funds to continue. Msibi then decided to go back to driving a taxi.And after four years in the taxi industry, he decided to buy two new taxis, which would help provide the income to complete his degree. A friend and former taxi driver colleague of Msibi’s, Mathew Motedele, reminisces about their past. “We worked well for a long time and we were separated because of his decision to go back to school. I respect him and I will never forget the humour and the love he had for his passengers.” In 2003 Msibi registered for the sound engineering course at Central Joburg College, and he passed with distinction three years later. On graduation he was offered a job at Wits. He went on to establish a lab, where he teaches practical sound technology. Thabang Mohlating, a former student at Johannesburg Youth Orchestra Music School, said of Msibi: “I learned a lot from him. He is the best; we had a good relationship with him as students.” This article was published by The Star Africa Edtion on the 10 April 2012. RADIO PRODUCER TAKES EDUCATION SERIOUS
Radio producer and presenter with more than four qualifications Marcia Lebambo believes that hard work pays.
Lebambo was born and raised in Bushbuckbridge, Mpumalanga before she moved to Pretoria to fulfil her dreams.
Lebambo is a current affairs show producer and presenter at TUT FM Live@ 6. The radio station is based at Tshwane University of Technology, Soshanguve.
According to Lebambo, she enjoys informing the community about news and things that are taking place in their area.
“Reporting and informing the community is what I enjoy most in the show. We discuss different issue that affects them and we invite different guests for different departments to help bring solutions about the challenges that the community faces.
In 2004 Lebambo completed her matric at Skhukuza SeniorSchool and passed Business management and Economics with distinctions.
Lebambo said she always desired to further her studies but because of financial reasons she thought her dreamswon’t come true until she had a word with her principal Mr Letswalo
“I went to the principal to enquire where I can further my studies and get funds.”
She added that she wrote a letter for different universities after the principal gave her a contact book with different university addresses.
“I wrote for different universities but only TUT responded. I wanted them to accept me after I have upgraded my economics and mathematics,” Lebambo explained.
Lebambo said she initially planned to study for journalism but her parents couldn’t afford to pay for registration fees before the closing date.
Through that she lost her chances of being registered as a student journalist. She had to wait for her parents to get money at the end of the month so that she can register for another course.
In 2005 Lebambo managed to secure her space and registered on time for Administration management. She added that she told herself that after this qualification, she would enrol for another qualification.
“My aim was to enrol for more than one qualification. On my first year I passed all my subjects with distinctions.”
During her first year, Lebambo was an active student as she participated in many activities such as political structure Azania Student Convention, debate team, residents committee and TUT FM 96.2.
“I told myself that Ihave to participate in different activities beside my studies. I didn’t want to be an ordinary student,” Lebambo said.
During her first year, she started volunteering at TUT FMas she saw radio as a good platform to develop her communication skills.
“I saw radio as platform to developmy communication skills.”
In 2008 Lebambo registered for a B-Tech in Strategic Management before she got a job as a resident assistant at Tshwane University of Technology.
At the age of 20-years –old she became a permanent TCE 1 resident’s manager.
In 2010 Lebambo went an extra-mile to register for masters in Entrepreneurship with Tshwane University of Technology.
“The whole last year I was busy with my masters but I did half of it. I am happy that I will be finishing it this year,” Lebambo said.
Lebambo also has a certificate in Business Communication from UNISA and another B-Tech in Public Management.
According to Lebambo she saw education as her only friend.
“I am not from a good background that is why I took education as my friend. I don’t have a friend that can change my life. The only friend that can change my life is education,” Lebambo said.
Lebambo won several awards such as awarded for being best resident’s manger in the year 2008.
Recently Lebambo visited her previous school to propose a project were she would be offering career guidance.
“I went back to where I did matric and proposed that I will visit them during my spare time and offer career guidance and other things that might take learners to the next level,” Lebambo concluded. | Raw emotion at funeral Sthembiso Sithole @SITHOLEEXPRESS
Sheila Ngwenya attending a memorial service of his son David Hlongwane. The memorial service of 16-year-old David Hlongwane, who committed suicide after he had allegedly been bullied, was held last week Thursday at Lethabong Secondary School in Soshanguve. Classmate, teachers, friends and family members gathered in their numbers to bid farewell. President of the school’s Representative Council of Learners, Boikayo Mamabolo, broke down after reliving a few moments with Hlongwane. “This is a big loss for us. We never prepared ourselves fir this, but it brings us back to what we have lost and determines who we will become,” said Mamabolo. Tears flowed from the eyes of Sheila Hlongwane, Hlongwane’s mother as she listened to the school governing body chairman giving his condolences. “He was very young. We will forever remember our child, an ambassador for Lethabong,” Mangaxa said. Representing the teachers, Ms J Mokonyana described Hlongwane’s death as a sad loss. “We have failed as a school. As teachers we look at these children and hope to see them successful one day,” she said. The representative of the district office of the education of Gauteng, Mrs Phokano said Hlongwane’s death should teach them how precious human life is. Charles Phahlane, spokesperson of the Gauteng Education said they sent councillors to help the family and pupils. This article was published by community newspaper Rekord Noweto..2012
Media, Educators & Government Discuss the African Story Sthembiso Sithole @SITHOLEEXPRESS 
Nqakula told panelists that positive government stories need to be published. The media is most people’s only window to places outside South Africa and through television screens, radio and newspaper reports people can be transported to countries across the African continent. But this picture of Africa depends on how the journalist and the news organisation they work for cover the rest of the continent. From their angle, people sitting in their homes across South Africa would then formulate their own picture of other regions in Africa. Many would remember how the North African countries of Libya, Egypt and Tunisia dominated the news in 2011 as people were revolting against their governments. Libya’s was the most difficult as that country’s president Muammar Ghaddafi was refusing to step down until the rebels started hunting him down and eventually killed him. Nato also declared the airspace over Libya a no-fly zone and then started shelling the country. That is the story of North Africa from 2011 many would remember. The dictators who led those countries are no longer in power and as there are fewer protests, no shelling of the region and a bit of calm, the stories from there have also stopped. There is also a huge possibility that many who watched those conflicts would not know a North Africa without conflict as they’ve never seen it through their window. How the continent is depicted in the media came under the spotlight on Monday during the Media and Communications Colloquium titled, “Telling the African Story: Presenting the Continent to the world.” The event was organised in Pretoria on Moday by the Department of International Relations and Cooperation in partnership with Oresego Holdings. In the panel were media practitioners, media scholars and politicians. During her opening speech, Home Affairs Minister, Dr. Nkosazana Dlamini-Zuma stressed that it’s not just the media’s duty to tell the African story from the perspective of the continent, but a responsibility of those that are from the continent. She also questioned whether enough people have the ability of telling their own story. “There is a saying that [goes] as long as lions don’t have historians the story will be told by the hunter,” said Dlamini-Zuma. Wits University Public and Development Management Senior Lecturer, Koffi Kouakou, said several questions need to be asked by African journalists. “What is story telling? How to tell it in your advantage?” Last week the images that dominated international television and online news organisations were of clashes that took place between COSATU and the DA in central Johannesburg as the opposition party was marching for the implementation of the Youth Wage Subsidy. Many of those stories in international media were covered by South African journalists. Sometimes images of government corruption make it to these international news organisation, it’s seldom that positive stories of the country are told abroad. Political Advisor to the Presidency, Charles Nqakula, blamed South Africa’s media for creating a negative image of government. He said the media often ignores positive stories such as openings of clinics. “The story that we are carrying is about failure. The president cannot read his speech, that is a story?” Responding to Nqakula’s question, Mail & Guardian Political Reporter, Mandy Rossouw said government should not expect to be congratulated by the media when doing the job elected to do. “Why should we congratulate what the government in what it’s supposed to do while my editor does not congratulate me when coming to work?”
Dlamini-Zuma feels African pride should be instilled in young journos. Dlamini-Zuma feels a sense of African pride needs to be instilled in young journalists coming into the field so they change the African story told in the media. “Young journalists should be inquisitive and should want to find out for themselves and not write down stories they hear from other people. They should tell stories themselves and should be proud of themselves to be Africans." Others that were part of the panel discussion were SAFM presenter Tshepiso Makwetla, The Star Editor Makhudu Sefara, Sunday Times Reporter Mzilikazi wa Afrika and head of the University of Pretoria’s Journalism Department Professor Pippa Green. As the conference ended it seemed an answer had not been found of how the story of Africa seen in Africa’s media can be changed. One can almost bet that in South Africa we will not get much coverage of Kenya unless there is violence similar to the one that took place after the December 2007 elections, we probably will never hear of Mali unless there is a coup, a counter coup or when rebels take over places in the north. The rest of the African continent will continue to be a bleeding place for us and as Rossouw explained - government here at home should not expect to be applauded on good work as her editor does not congratulate her for coming to work. Posted by Journ Tau at 12:28 AM
NURSES TAKE STAGE Sthembiso Sithole @SITHOLEEXPRESS South Africa’s largest hospital hosted Mr and Miss Chris Hani Baragwanath 2012 that was held at Chris Hani’s Baragwanath Hospital Recreational Hall.
Student nurses gathered in their numbers as they looked lavish to witness their new King and Queen.
Celeb Makahubalo and Thando Dudludlu crowned The event was aimed to boost student’s confidents about their bodies and to relax their minds as they spend most of their time studying. This is according to Londiwe Ntuli,Chris Hani Hospital project officer. “Today’s event, we want our students to feel confident with their bodies, especially ladies. We want our students to have fun as they work hard in their studies.” Celeb Makahubalo and Thando Dudludlu were crowned Mr and Miss Chris Hani Baragwanath Hospital after entertaining the judges with their swim and formal wear attires. Thando Dudludlu said she entered for the competition in last minutes but she is glad to have won the pageant. “I feel overwhelmed and excited that I won to be Miss Chris Hani hospital 2012. I took my chance to enter for the competition in last minutes and I managed to take it,” Dudludlu said. 1st prince and Princess were Karabelo Sempe and Perseverance Tshabalala. Mojalefe Maselela and Sibahle Mthembu were crowned 2rd prince and princess. Making the pageant more interesting, organisers decided to add other categories such as Mr Money, Ms Fit nurse and Ms Fun, Fully and figured also known as Ms Fohloza. President of Chris Hani Baragwanath Hospital Nursing College, Patrick Lekala said the event was a success and hopes that next year it will grow big. “We did not have sponsors but the event managed to succeed. We hope next year things will grow big.” While judges looked keen to the contestants, the crowed was screaming to the music that Dj Tisetso Bokgutso played. Former Mr and Miss Chris Hani Baragwanath Hospital Tshepiso Moitsheki and KeleabetsweDumpe walked on stage to say their goodbye as they make way to the new Mr and Miss Chris Hani Baragwanath Hospital. |
