Despite the cheating scandal that hit Limpopo when a question paper was leaked during the 2016 matric examinations, the province has once again produced the highest number of top performers in the country.
Out of 22 national top achievers, 12 hail from the province.
They were honoured by Minister of Basic Education Angie Motshekga who had breakfast with them yesterday at Vodaworld, Midrand, in Johannesburg ahead of the announcement of the matric results.
Last year, the province produced seven of the country's top 23 performers.
And, yet again, the schools that dominated in 2016's top achievers were Mbilwi Secondary School, Dendron High School, Tshivhase Secondary School and Rivoni School for the Blind.
The top three pupils with special education needs came from Rivoni , and another pupil from Risinga High School, also in Limpopo, joined pupils from affluent schools by being part of the top achievers in physical science nationally.
Limpopo was followed by Western Cape which produced four top performing pupils. The province also came second last year.
KwaZulu-Natal and Eastern Cape produced two pupils each. Mpumalanga, which did not feature in 2015's top achievers, produced one pupil in 2016.
Free State, Gauteng, North West and Northern Cape were not represented among this year's top performers.
Speaking at the breakfast, Motshekga said the 22 top performers were officially the ambassadors for the public schooling system as they were the "bright sparks" in public schooling.
"You have set the bar higher, you have sent a profound message to all other children in the country that personal circumstances must not condemn anyone to perpetual poverty and underachievement.
"Some of the learners who are top learners are kids who come from extreme poverty, who against all odds push themselves to the limit, and again we want to thank you for also giving us the opportunity to take the message to other children," Motshekga said.
"You can imagine how few you are and we had more than 800000 pupils who wrote matric so you are really the best of the best in the country. For that again congratulations," she said.
She also took the opportunity to thank the parents, teachers and principals for the support they gave to the pupils which led them to produce "extraordinary" results.
Among the prizes that the pupils received were prize money, laptops and gift vouchers towards study material.
Limpopo had the highest number of top performing pupils in 2015 but it was not number one in the overall pass rate nationally as it obtained a 65.9% pass rate.
Sowetan reported in November that the mathematics paper 2 examination scripts from schools in the Mopani district, Limpopo, would be quarantined after the question paper was leaked to pupils. Results from the two schools hit by an exam leak scandal would be withheld.
Hard work pays off for pupils
Hlulani Malungani
Despite losing his eyesight while doing Grade 10, Hlulani Malungani is one of the top-performing matrics in the country.
He was one of three top pupils with special needs. The two others, Zacharia Nyathi and Ephodia Mudau, were also from his alma mater, Rivoni School for the Blind in Limpopo.
"I wasn't born blind. From 2008 I could notice myself becoming blind little by little. I became completely blind after I had an operation at the Mankweng Hospital in 2014. It just worsened things."
He moved to Rivoni in 2014.
"To be honest, because I was desperate to study I made sure that I learnt Braille. It didn't even take me two weeks to learn it."
Malungani will enrol for a psychology degree at the University of Venda. He got accepted to six universities for different courses. Wits University took him for education and music degrees. "I'm a very good singer, if I can say so. I'm planning on pursuing it, doing something that will get me there on top."
Malamba Nemavhadwe
"I'VE been waiting for this moment ever since Grade 8," Malamba Nemavhadwe said, referring to being crowned one of the country's top-performing matrics.
The pupil from Tshivhase Secondary School in Limpopo was one of three top-performing matrics from quintile two schools across the country. These schools are the second poorest after quintile one.
"When I was about to do my Grade 8 there was this guy who motivated me to study all the time. I started doing that.
"Even in my Grade 12 I was persistent the whole year, every day was a study day for me."
She plans to enrol for actuarial science at Wits University which had conditionally accepted her.
Talenta Matiane
No university in the country rejected Talenta Matiane's application to study medicine.
Matiane, who studied at Jim Chavani High School at Xikundu, east of Thohoyandou, Limpopo, is one of three top-performing matrics from quintile two schools.
"But I'm thinking of going to UCT or Sefako Makgatho University in Pretoria North, " he said.
He said he wanted to study medicine to motivate youth in his home village outside Malamulele.
"A lot of youth at Matiane village are unmotivated. It's one of those areas notorious for learners going to school to start fights.
"I wanted to be someone who goes against that trend .." Medicine is also something I've been quite interested in for years." - Bongani Nkosi
Limpopo pupils top high achievers' list
Despite the cheating scandal that hit Limpopo when a question paper was leaked during the 2016 matric examinations, the province has once again produced the highest number of top performers in the country.
Out of 22 national top achievers, 12 hail from the province.
They were honoured by Minister of Basic Education Angie Motshekga who had breakfast with them yesterday at Vodaworld, Midrand, in Johannesburg ahead of the announcement of the matric results.
Last year, the province produced seven of the country's top 23 performers.
And, yet again, the schools that dominated in 2016's top achievers were Mbilwi Secondary School, Dendron High School, Tshivhase Secondary School and Rivoni School for the Blind.
The top three pupils with special education needs came from Rivoni , and another pupil from Risinga High School, also in Limpopo, joined pupils from affluent schools by being part of the top achievers in physical science nationally.
Limpopo was followed by Western Cape which produced four top performing pupils. The province also came second last year.
KwaZulu-Natal and Eastern Cape produced two pupils each. Mpumalanga, which did not feature in 2015's top achievers, produced one pupil in 2016.
Free State, Gauteng, North West and Northern Cape were not represented among this year's top performers.
Speaking at the breakfast, Motshekga said the 22 top performers were officially the ambassadors for the public schooling system as they were the "bright sparks" in public schooling.
"You have set the bar higher, you have sent a profound message to all other children in the country that personal circumstances must not condemn anyone to perpetual poverty and underachievement.
"Some of the learners who are top learners are kids who come from extreme poverty, who against all odds push themselves to the limit, and again we want to thank you for also giving us the opportunity to take the message to other children," Motshekga said.
"You can imagine how few you are and we had more than 800000 pupils who wrote matric so you are really the best of the best in the country. For that again congratulations," she said.
She also took the opportunity to thank the parents, teachers and principals for the support they gave to the pupils which led them to produce "extraordinary" results.
Among the prizes that the pupils received were prize money, laptops and gift vouchers towards study material.
Limpopo had the highest number of top performing pupils in 2015 but it was not number one in the overall pass rate nationally as it obtained a 65.9% pass rate.
Sowetan reported in November that the mathematics paper 2 examination scripts from schools in the Mopani district, Limpopo, would be quarantined after the question paper was leaked to pupils. Results from the two schools hit by an exam leak scandal would be withheld.
Hard work pays off for pupils
Hlulani Malungani
Despite losing his eyesight while doing Grade 10, Hlulani Malungani is one of the top-performing matrics in the country.
He was one of three top pupils with special needs. The two others, Zacharia Nyathi and Ephodia Mudau, were also from his alma mater, Rivoni School for the Blind in Limpopo.
"I wasn't born blind. From 2008 I could notice myself becoming blind little by little. I became completely blind after I had an operation at the Mankweng Hospital in 2014. It just worsened things."
He moved to Rivoni in 2014.
"To be honest, because I was desperate to study I made sure that I learnt Braille. It didn't even take me two weeks to learn it."
Malungani will enrol for a psychology degree at the University of Venda. He got accepted to six universities for different courses. Wits University took him for education and music degrees. "I'm a very good singer, if I can say so. I'm planning on pursuing it, doing something that will get me there on top."
Malamba Nemavhadwe
"I'VE been waiting for this moment ever since Grade 8," Malamba Nemavhadwe said, referring to being crowned one of the country's top-performing matrics.
The pupil from Tshivhase Secondary School in Limpopo was one of three top-performing matrics from quintile two schools across the country. These schools are the second poorest after quintile one.
"When I was about to do my Grade 8 there was this guy who motivated me to study all the time. I started doing that.
"Even in my Grade 12 I was persistent the whole year, every day was a study day for me."
She plans to enrol for actuarial science at Wits University which had conditionally accepted her.
Talenta Matiane
No university in the country rejected Talenta Matiane's application to study medicine.
Matiane, who studied at Jim Chavani High School at Xikundu, east of Thohoyandou, Limpopo, is one of three top-performing matrics from quintile two schools.
"But I'm thinking of going to UCT or Sefako Makgatho University in Pretoria North, " he said.
He said he wanted to study medicine to motivate youth in his home village outside Malamulele.
"A lot of youth at Matiane village are unmotivated. It's one of those areas notorious for learners going to school to start fights.
"I wanted to be someone who goes against that trend .." Medicine is also something I've been quite interested in for years." - Bongani Nkosi
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