The life and legacy of Dr TK Mopeli were remembered and celebrated during the TK Mopeli Memorial Lecture held on the UFS Qwaqwa Campus on 28 September.
As the campus celebrated 20 years as one of the delivery sites of the UFS, the memorial lecture was a fitting tribute to one of the leading champions who played a pivotal role in the founding of the Qwaqwa Campus. Dr Mopeli (1954-2014) is the former Chief Minister of the South African Bantustan of Qwaqwa. The Qwaqwa Campus was established in 1982 as a satellite of the historically black University of the North (UNIN), now the University of Limpopo. In 2003, the UFS underwent integration, which saw the Qwaqwa Campus merging with the Bloemfontein Campus to form a single, comprehensive university.
He also played an integral role in building more than 600 schools in Qwaqwa and Botshabelo in the Free State.
Delivering the keynote address, Dr Elias Malete, Senior Lecturer and Academic Head of the Department of African Languages in the Faculty of The Humanities at the University of the Free State, said Dr Mopeli contributed immensely to the education of black people.
“According to the work of other scholars such as Mbeki, the purpose of education is to create consciousness by revealing the truth through facts, to enable an appreciation of beauty, and to give people the capacity to create what is good for themselves, the world, and humanity. Dr TK Mopeli was a leader who invested in his people,” he said.
Members of the Mopeli Royal Household formed part of the lecture, as Dr Malete described Dr Mopeli as a humble leader, passionate about the advancement of his people and the preservation of the Basotho nation.
“Effective leadership must have the capacity to transform individuals, communities, and societies. When Dr TK Mopeli took over as a leader, black people were landless. Their physical spaces had been reduced to bantustans, and businesses in Qwaqwa were owned by white people. His leadership oversaw the development of the agriculture sector, industries, and tourism. Things began to get better.”
Dr Malete thanked the UFS for commemorating Dr Mopeli’s history as part of the celebrations. “He wasn’t a boastful man, but we need to sing his praises. Let us pay homage to this legend and unsung hero of the Basotho nation whose tireless efforts and monumental contributions will remain valuable to his people.”