After serving more than two years behind bars for fraud, Lerato Manaka has found her voice with the formation of a choir and drama group made up of former convicts to showcase their talents and educate society about the dangers of crime.
Manaka, 38, from Sasolburg, Free State, is the founder and CEO of the Modiehi Mongale Foundation — a registered non-profit organisation that assists female ex-offenders to generate income by using their talents in order to help them break the cycle of reoffending.
The foundation has 30 members who are between the ages of 34 and 50. Most of them were convicted for crimes such as fraud, murder and possession of drugs.
On Saturday, Manaka and her fellows performed for no more than 30 people at the Alternative Hangout restaurant in Mofolo Central in Soweto to raise awareness about crime.
Dressed in white T-shirts and blue jeans, the choristers sang, danced and rendered a play on the consequences of crime for the guests in attendance.
Manaka was convicted for fraud in 2017 after she was found to have stolen money from a company she worked for as an accountant. She was sentenced to 12 years imprisonment at the Johannesburg Correctional Centre, south of Joburg, with four years of her sentence suspended.
The mother of three said she is grateful for the rehabilitation programmes she was exposed to in prison.
“It is at Joburg Correctional Centre that I was introduced to singing, dancing and drama. I learned a lot. I believe I have paid my debt to society and now I am asking for a second chance. I went to prison and I have been corrected. I just want to keep myself busy doing something productive with my life, like the choir we have,” said Manaka.
“As someone who has first-hand experience of what prison is like, I believe it will be easier for me to inform others about why they should not commit crime and why prison is a bad space. You share a cell with 14 other people, share one toilet and you are told when to sleep and wake up. That is horrible.”
Manaka, who holds a national diploma in accounting from the University of Johannesburg, was released on early parole. She benefitted from President Cyril Ramaphosa’s parole of low-risk inmates to ease overcrowding and curb the spread of Covid-19 in prisons last year.
Lindiwe Mzobe, the conductor of the choir group, is also doing her bit to turn her life around.
The 46-year-old mother was convicted for murder in 2008. She was sentenced to 18 years at the Joburg Correctional Centre. She got a six-year suspended sentence and served a full 12 years at the correctional facility. She was released in June last year.
Mzobe, who lives in Evaton, south of Joburg, attributed her love for music to the right choices she made while she was incarcerated.
“When I was in prison I saw that there are good and bad people. I chose to associate myself with good people and made a decision right then and there to change my life. I participated in the choir and sports like soccer and volleyball in prison. This helped me to learn a lot of skills,” she said.
Mzobe said she wants to become a gospel singer.
“Music is on my mind all the time. I want to work on my singing ability. Age is just a number for me. My voice is perfect and I still have a long way to go in music,” said Mzobe.
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A musical turn for the better
Former convicts have started a choir that raises awareness about crime
Image: ANTONIO MUCHAVE
After serving more than two years behind bars for fraud, Lerato Manaka has found her voice with the formation of a choir and drama group made up of former convicts to showcase their talents and educate society about the dangers of crime.
Manaka, 38, from Sasolburg, Free State, is the founder and CEO of the Modiehi Mongale Foundation — a registered non-profit organisation that assists female ex-offenders to generate income by using their talents in order to help them break the cycle of reoffending.
The foundation has 30 members who are between the ages of 34 and 50. Most of them were convicted for crimes such as fraud, murder and possession of drugs.
On Saturday, Manaka and her fellows performed for no more than 30 people at the Alternative Hangout restaurant in Mofolo Central in Soweto to raise awareness about crime.
Dressed in white T-shirts and blue jeans, the choristers sang, danced and rendered a play on the consequences of crime for the guests in attendance.
Manaka was convicted for fraud in 2017 after she was found to have stolen money from a company she worked for as an accountant. She was sentenced to 12 years imprisonment at the Johannesburg Correctional Centre, south of Joburg, with four years of her sentence suspended.
The mother of three said she is grateful for the rehabilitation programmes she was exposed to in prison.
“It is at Joburg Correctional Centre that I was introduced to singing, dancing and drama. I learned a lot. I believe I have paid my debt to society and now I am asking for a second chance. I went to prison and I have been corrected. I just want to keep myself busy doing something productive with my life, like the choir we have,” said Manaka.
“As someone who has first-hand experience of what prison is like, I believe it will be easier for me to inform others about why they should not commit crime and why prison is a bad space. You share a cell with 14 other people, share one toilet and you are told when to sleep and wake up. That is horrible.”
Manaka, who holds a national diploma in accounting from the University of Johannesburg, was released on early parole. She benefitted from President Cyril Ramaphosa’s parole of low-risk inmates to ease overcrowding and curb the spread of Covid-19 in prisons last year.
Lindiwe Mzobe, the conductor of the choir group, is also doing her bit to turn her life around.
The 46-year-old mother was convicted for murder in 2008. She was sentenced to 18 years at the Joburg Correctional Centre. She got a six-year suspended sentence and served a full 12 years at the correctional facility. She was released in June last year.
Mzobe, who lives in Evaton, south of Joburg, attributed her love for music to the right choices she made while she was incarcerated.
“When I was in prison I saw that there are good and bad people. I chose to associate myself with good people and made a decision right then and there to change my life. I participated in the choir and sports like soccer and volleyball in prison. This helped me to learn a lot of skills,” she said.
Mzobe said she wants to become a gospel singer.
“Music is on my mind all the time. I want to work on my singing ability. Age is just a number for me. My voice is perfect and I still have a long way to go in music,” said Mzobe.
.
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