Muldersdrift, nestled in Mogale City or the City of Human Origin, is known for its beautiful mountains, landscape, hotels and resorts. It is also regarded as the tourism capital of Gauteng, for a good reason.
I first visited Muldersdrift in 2017. Mmusi Maimane’s spiritual mentor, Pastor Craig Rowe, had invited me to his Velocity Church. Members of that church are black and white – and treat each other with respect and dignity. The other day I read a book review of The History of Mulder's Drift: 1815 - 2015. The book covers the area's history and its people.
It also touches on the important families (Mulders and Koekemoers) living there, who are all white Afrikaners. The book also reveals that the place was named after Mulder. My problem is that Muldersdrift is presented as the area of white Afrikaner people only. It is as if there are no blacks living there. Yet there are.
Why is nothing said about them? Don’t they form part of history of that area? The more things change, the more they remain the same. A few weeks ago, Leslie Gama invited me to Muldersdrift, where blacks live. The place is an informal settlement. Poverty and unemployment are written all over the area. Remember, poverty is a crime against humanity.
Gama was born and schooled in Muldersdrift. He is now a community developer and co-founder of an organisation called Umnotho. The organisation was established to develop Muldersdrift and her people. The nonprofit is self-funded and has bought a big land in the area. It is busy building houses for its members.
Not only that, but it is also providing water to the informal settlement nearby. And it feeds about 75 poor people daily. Umnotho has also partnered with Seed Africa to train residents on entrepreneurship. They call their course mini MBA.
When the trainees complete their training, they get certificates. Seed Africa also incubate their businesses. In conclusion, Gama’s organisation provides a manual on how a society should sustain itself, and not depend entirely on government. I hope other poor communities can learn from Muldersdrift residents and do things for themselves.
Thabile Mange, Mogale City
READER LETTER | Muldersdrift's empowerment drive
Image: ANTONIO MUCHAVE
Muldersdrift, nestled in Mogale City or the City of Human Origin, is known for its beautiful mountains, landscape, hotels and resorts. It is also regarded as the tourism capital of Gauteng, for a good reason.
I first visited Muldersdrift in 2017. Mmusi Maimane’s spiritual mentor, Pastor Craig Rowe, had invited me to his Velocity Church. Members of that church are black and white – and treat each other with respect and dignity. The other day I read a book review of The History of Mulder's Drift: 1815 - 2015. The book covers the area's history and its people.
It also touches on the important families (Mulders and Koekemoers) living there, who are all white Afrikaners. The book also reveals that the place was named after Mulder. My problem is that Muldersdrift is presented as the area of white Afrikaner people only. It is as if there are no blacks living there. Yet there are.
Why is nothing said about them? Don’t they form part of history of that area? The more things change, the more they remain the same. A few weeks ago, Leslie Gama invited me to Muldersdrift, where blacks live. The place is an informal settlement. Poverty and unemployment are written all over the area. Remember, poverty is a crime against humanity.
Gama was born and schooled in Muldersdrift. He is now a community developer and co-founder of an organisation called Umnotho. The organisation was established to develop Muldersdrift and her people. The nonprofit is self-funded and has bought a big land in the area. It is busy building houses for its members.
Not only that, but it is also providing water to the informal settlement nearby. And it feeds about 75 poor people daily. Umnotho has also partnered with Seed Africa to train residents on entrepreneurship. They call their course mini MBA.
When the trainees complete their training, they get certificates. Seed Africa also incubate their businesses. In conclusion, Gama’s organisation provides a manual on how a society should sustain itself, and not depend entirely on government. I hope other poor communities can learn from Muldersdrift residents and do things for themselves.
Thabile Mange, Mogale City
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