Durban - Deputy Chief Justice Raymond Zondo took time out from the Commission of Inquiry into State Capture, this week, to visit his former school at Ixopo.
Judge Zondo and his wife Thembekile joined the South African Muslim Charitable Trust (SAMCT) in partnership with the Zondo & Bux Educational Trust, when they donated R1.5 million towards a borehole and infrastructure development at Emazabekweni Primary, on the South Coast.
The Zondo & Bux Educational Trust was established to assist disadvantaged schools and to pay back an act of kindness Zondo received.
While pursuing his law degree at the University of Natal, businessman Solly Bux, based in Ixopo at the time, agreed to assist Zondo's family by supplying them with groceries until Zondo completed his studies. When Zondo graduated and was in a position to repay Bux, the businessman declined and asked that he pay it forward and assist others in need.
Before the unveiling of the project at the primary school, Shabir Chohan CEO of AlBaraka Bank and a SAMCT representative, took the Judge to the Emazabekweni High School.
The trust had funded a digital library with Maths and Science programmes and tutorials to assist Grades 8 to 12. Pupils at the school received tablets and free wi fi.
“We have to make Mr Zondo proud and ensure that all facilities and technology available to you is utilised,” said Chohan to the pupils there.
Giving advice to the class of 2020, Zondo said the future was in their hands and that education was the best ammunition for the future.
“A time will come when most of us will not be here, and the country will be in your hands. We want to ensure that when that time comes, you will be armed with the right education, so the country prospers,” he said.
The team then went on to Emazabekweni Primary for the unveiling of the project.
Addressing parents and guests, Zondo emphasised the importance of pupils choosing the right subjects.
“Maths and Science are the subjects that we should focus on more than others because they open many doors. These subjects afford equal opportunity, and in future, will allow learners when they are leaders to provide solutions to global problems. Without these subjects, we cannot contribute toward progress,” he said.
Mondli Dlamini, the school's principal said they were overwhelmed.
“Having toilets for both staff and learners, as well as all the other restorative work completed here, is amazing. We salute the SAMCT’s invaluable contribution and undertake, as stakeholders within the school, to ensure the delivery of quality education for the benefit of our learners, in light of an environment which lends itself to teaching and learning,” said Dlamini.