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04 September 2018
Photo Thabo Kessah
Industrial Psychology Head of Department and lecturer, Thinus Delport; final-year BAdmin student, Nandi Radebe; and Jacobus Nel during the SABPP event on the Qwaqwa Campus.
The South African Board for People Practices (SABPP) recently visited the University of the Free State’s Qwaqwa Campus to welcome new members to its Student Chapter. Over 100 Industrial Psychology students were issued with certificates of registration and membership.
Talking during the ceremony, the Assistant Dean of the Faculty of Economic and Management Sciences, Jacobus Nel, congratulated all the students and the newly-elected executive committee on campus.
“You have taken the right step in advancing yourselves in the profession you are studying for, and we are pleased to see that you recognise that your future is in your own hands. Your future is not in the hands of the university, nor is it in the hands of the SABPP,” he said.
The SABPP was represented by the Chief Operations Officer, Xolani Mawande, who advised the new members and students in general to keep doing their best, even when conditions do not permit.
“The Human Resources profession wants individuals who do not just give up because there are challenges. Challenges will always be there, especially in a workplace. Being a member will expose you to other HR professionals as well as give you the opportunity to network with other students,” he added.
Mawande also announced that the new Chairperson and Deputy Chairperson of the Qwaqwa Campus SABPP Student Chapter would be attending a national convention in Johannesburg that was scheduled for 30-31 August 2018.
Zama-geza Goba, a final-year BAdmin student, was elected as the Chairperson while Musawenkosi Mazibuko, a BA Industrial Psychology student, was elected as her deputy.
2010 World Cup: An opportunity for nation-building
2010-05-11
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Pictured from the left, front are: Prof. Labuschagne and Prof. Cornelissen. Back: Prof. Kersting, Prof. Teuns Verschoor (Acting Senior Vice-Rector: UFS) and Dr Ralf Hermann (DAAD).
Photo: Mangaliso Radebe |
“The 2010 FIFA World Cup creates a window of opportunity for nation-building in South Africa that could even surpass the opportunity created by the 1995 Rugby World Cup.”
This was according to Prof. Pieter Labuschagne from the University of South Africa, who was one of the three speakers during the lecture series on soccer that were recently presented by the Faculty of the Humanities at the University of the Free State (UFS), in conjunction with the German Academic Exchange Service (DAAD), under the theme: Soccer and Nation Building.
Prof. Labuschagne delivered a paper on the topic, The 2010 Soccer World Cup in South Africa: Nation Building or White Apathy?, highlighting the critical issue of how sport in South Africa was still largely supported along racial lines.
“We are still enforcing the separateness of rugby as a sport for whites and soccer as a sport for blacks,” he said.
He said a high degree of animosity against soccer existed among whites because they felt rugby and cricket were being singled out by parliament as far as transformation was concerned. He said that could be the reason why a large number of South African whites still supported soccer teams from foreign countries instead of local Premier Soccer League teams.
“Bridging social context between different racial groups is still a major problem, even though patriotism is comparatively high in South Africa,” added Prof. Norbert Kersting from the University of Stellenbosch, who also presented a paper on World Cup 2010 and nation building from Germany to South Africa, drawing critical comparisons on issues of national pride and identity between the 2006 World Cup in Germany and the 2010 World Cup.
“Strong leadership is needed to utilize the opportunity provided by the 2010 World Cup to build national unity as former President Nelson Mandela did with the Rugby World Cup in 1995,” said Prof. Labuschagne.
Although acknowledging the power of sport as a unifying force, Prof. Scarlett Cornelissen, also from the University of Stellenbosch, said that, since 1995, the captivating power of sport had been used to achieve political aims and that the 2010 World Cup was no different.
Amongst the reasons she advanced for her argument were that the 2010 World Cup was meant to show the world that South Africa was a capable country; that the World Cup was meant to solidify South Africa’s “African Agenda” – the African Renaissance - and also to extend the idea of the Rainbow Nation; consolidate democracy; contribute to socio-economic development and legitimize the state.
“We should not place too much emphasis on the 2010 World Cup as a nation-building instrument,” she concluded.
She presented a paper on the topic Transforming the Nation? The political legacies of the 2010 FIFA World Cup.
The aim of the lecture series was to inspire public debate on the social and cultural dimensions of soccer.
DAAD (Deutscher Akademischer Austausch Dienst) is one of the world’s largest and most respected intermediary organisations in the field of international academic cooperation.
Media Release
Issued by: Mangaliso Radebe
Assistant Director: Media Liaison
Tel: 051 401 2828
Cell: 078 460 3320
E-mail: radebemt@ufs.ac.za
11 May 2010