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08 February 2019 | Story Thabo Kessah | Photo Thabo Kessah
Gateway 2019
From the left: Mookgo Mofokeng, Lethukuthula Nsibande, Siyalungelwa Ntombela, and Chulumanco Mazwi.
The two-week Gateway Orientation programme to introduce first-year students to campus and faculty life on the Qwaqwa Campus,  has been a resounding success – if the first-years’ comments are anything to go by.

“Amazing Race was for me the pinnacle of this programme, as it enabled me to get to know the campus much better. It was such a refreshing experience, despite my sore thighs that are still hurting. I also loved the Step Up for success initiative,” said Chulumanco Mazwi from Mthatha in the Eastern Cape. Chulumanco has enrolled for a BAdmin degree, which will “enable me to interact with people, particularly in the corporate world”.

From Paballong Village in Qwaqwa came a budding scientist, Mookgo Mofokeng. “The programme has afforded me the opportunity to interact with a number of students from different places such as KwaZulu-Natal, Eastern Cape, and Gauteng,” she said. “I have also learnt about the history of the campus that is very close to my heart,” said Mookgo. “This is the campus where I won the prize for my Eskom Expo for Young Scientists project, with my partner and I displaying our water-extracting project as learners from the Beacon Secondary School here in Qwaqwa. For more on this, please watch the environmental television programme 50/50 on SABC 2 on 17 February 2019.”

Coming from Newcastle in KwaZulu-Natal is ‘the future businessman in the computing sector’, Lethukuthula Nsibande. “The Gateway orientation programme was so much fun, as it enabled me to see teamwork as an integral part of our development as first-years. Considering that I want to pursue business in the interesting world of computers, I have seen that interacting with others is crucial,” said Lethukuthula, a BSc IT (Computer Science and Management) student.

From Johannesburg, Gauteng, comes Siyalungelwa Ntombela, a BEd (Intermediate Phase – Life Sills and Social Sciences) student who believes her studies will enable her to give back to her community. “I want to educate our future generations and make a difference. I found Gateway to be educational and entertaining. We have learnt a lot about university life and the campus in general. I now know about the services offered by the clinic, where the Mandela Hall is, and so on. Interacting and learning from our mentors was also one of the highlights,” she added.

News Archive

Triumph of the Human Spirit – a symbol of hope
2015-08-24

Ahmed Kathrada discusses his latest book, Triumph of the Human Spirit.
Photo: Johan Roux

“A triumph of courage and determination over human frailty and weakness; a triumph of the new South Africa over the old.” – Ahmed Kathrada

Ahmed Kathrada, stalwart of South Africa’s liberation struggle, visited the Bloemfontein Campus on 18 August 2015 to launch his latest book, Triumph of the Human Spirit. Turning page after page, the reader travels back with Uncle Kathy – as he is fondly known – to revisit Robben Island with the more than 300 guests he has accompanied since 1994. With each photo – be it a celebrity or school child, head of state or famous artist, friend or royalty – the significance of the island is eternalised, right alongside Ahmed Kathrada.

Message of triumph
“Why this specific title for the book?” Prof André Keet, Director of the Institute for Reconciliation and Social Justice (IRSJ), asked during the book launch. “Robben Island,” Kathrada answered, “should not be remembered only as a place of suffering – that’s history. But the message of Robben Island is the message of triumph – triumph of the human spirit over all sorts of adversities.”

Speaking about Kathrada’s quiet but profound impact, Zaakirah Vadi, editor of the book, said “I think Uncle Kathy does not realise what an inspiration his own strength of spirit is”. The fight for human values and dignity was “honed and perfected in the cells of Robben Island,” she said. “It created the vision for a new South Africa and, as Uncle Kathy puts it, the triumph of the new South Africa over the old.”

UFS surprises Ahmed Kathrada with a birthday cake.
Photo: Johan Roux

Freedom was sacrifice
This triumph was not achieved without a cost, though. “No freedom comes on a platter,” Kathrada said. “Freedom was fought for. Freedom was sacrifice. Through the sacrifices of those who did not survive, we are still here to tell the story.”

And that is exactly what Triumph of the Human Spirit does. As Kgalema Motlanthe writes in the foreword, “This book serves as a preservation of history and a symbol of hope.”

Birthday celebration
Just as the event seemed to come to a close, members of the Student Representative Council carried a candle-lit cake – shaped in the number 86 – toward Kathrada. This surprise was organised by the UFS to celebrate his birthday on 21 August 2015. And, as the audience cheered and sang, Kathrada’s smile spread like a light across the hall.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

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