#FeesMustFall activist in One Day Leader semis
A former Fees Must Fall leader is making waves on a popular television show.
Leadership comes naturally to Wits graduate
Wits graduate Lebo Mphela believes that the most important thing about leadership is the ability to listen. She is one of the Top 6 Finalists in leadership show One Day Leader.
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Wits student ready for presidency … internship
Wits student Zareef Minty is the winner of national competition One Day Leader. He will soon begin an internship at the presidency.
Q and A with Zareef Minty
Zareef Minty is a final-year LLB student, he was in the Mail & Guardian Top Young 200 in 2014 and he made the top 50 of South African GQ magazine’s Best Dressed in 2015. He is an author of a book called Empire and he was the chairperson of the Black Lawyers Association in 2014, he was the treasurer of the Law Students Council previously.He is currently participating in a show called One Day Leader on SABC 1.
Why did you decide to enter One Day Leader?
Ok, so what happened was that I tried to enter the year before, I didn’t even make it to top 90. I just always wanted to enter, I watched the show, before, saw Season 3, and I really enjoyed it. I felt it’s a really good platform for someone to build their leadership.
So far, what have you found challenging in being a part of the show?
So far it’s literally been just our vision statements and it’s quite simple. It’s what you believe in. We also tackled the #FeesMustFall campaign and we presented our solutions to the department of higher education into how can we solve the financial crisis. We looked at removing failing parastatals and cutting down the state wage bill. We also looked at how we can use solar energy for instance and cut down on the expensive way electricity is made at the moment. So these are all different concepts we’re looking at to make enough money available so that students will then have access to free education.
How has the journey so far affected your personal life?
I’m really starting to feel the leadership. I’m starting to feel the whole concept of being more accountable. I used to give myself a longer time limit to get things done, I think now being on the show and noticing that you have two days to do a task, and things need to be implemented, it can happen [in a shorter time].
What do you hate most about the show?
I really don’t have any huge criticisms of the show, I think it’s produced very well. The team that’s running behind the show is phenomenal. The tasks are very uplifting, so I really don’t see any cons to the show. Some room for improvement could be maybe lengthening the time of our debates. [This means] giving us more time to engage because you can’t say that much in two minutes.
What do you want people to know about Zareef by the end of the show?
I want people to know I’m here to stay. I’m not a one-hit-wonder that’s going to appear on a reality show then disappear, I’m going to be around for years to come. I’m here mainly to uplift society, show people the positive change you can create, but to also build a brand that people can understand that this is a future leader, and people [will be able to] identify in 5-10 years from now. I want to be an important stakeholder looking after society and making sure that communities succeed.
Q&A with Thamsanqa Pooe
Thamsanqa Pooe is a member of the Student Representative Council for the 2015/2016 academic year as the Social and Community Development Officer, an Allan Gray Orbis Fellow and considers himself a “servant leader”. He is currently doing his BA in Politics and International Relations. He is one of the founding members of the West Rand Debating Union that teaches young people the skills of public speaking and debate in the area. He is now participating in a popular reality television show, One Day Leader.
Witsie hopes to be the next ‘One Day Leader’
“MANY leaders lead, but they have never been through what they are leading people through”, Octavia Prince Shabangu, the only Witsie on the “One Day Leader” show, told Wits Vuvuzela this week.
Shabangu’s obstacles have helped him to share and give advice to other people. “You’ll find leaders advising people about poverty but they don’t know about poverty. I’ll never advise you on something I do not know”, he said.
“One day Leader” is a show aired on SABC 1 that is dedicated to uplifting young leaders by providing them with the skill-set and knowledge they need to tackle social, political and economic issues in South Africa through debate and other leadership activities. The six contestants compete with each other for the coveted title, “One Day Leader”.
Born and breed in Mpumalanga, in a small town called Gedlebane, Shabangu has climbed up the ladder to be the only Witsie and one of the top six “One Day Leader” contestants. but Shabangu’s climb has not been without difficulty.
Shabangu is in 3rd year, studying a bachelor’s degree in accountancy. He is the eldest of six children. His mother is a retired domestic worker and his father a part-time employed truck driver who just recently got employment in 2013.
RISE AGAIN: Octavia Shabangu on the road to becoming the #1 leader of the “One Day Leader” show. Photo by: Lutho Mtongana
“Growing up was tough but I think it’s something that I needed to prepare me for the harsh reality of what life had to offer,” said Shabangu.
He believes a great leader should be resilient.
“Don’t give up on yourself, don’t give up on your dreams, don’t give up on the people around you,” he said.
One day [last year] he and his family were evicted. “When we arrived home and we found everything in the streets, my parents at the time were both unemployed and there was nothing they could do. Me and my family were rendered homeless, I was still in school, I had to leave school for a while, for about four months so I could just find a job and stabilize everything. I never thought that I as an individual, I could be hopeless,” he continued.
However, despite the hurdles he faced last year having tried to get on the show, and not making it to the top 20 of season two, Shabangu went back to school and decided to try and enter the competition again.
He was in a taxi rank when the phone rang for an interview with him. Later that same day, he heard he was again not on the top 20 list of candidates who made on the show. After hearing the news he decided to beg for a second chance. “Let me debate all 20 of them,” he said.
After being allowed to debate one of the top six candidates, Siphosenkosi Malimela, he made it to the top six.
“I just keep on coming and coming as hard as I can. I’m true to my values and I believe in the power of inspiration,” he said.
He draws his inspiration from big problems in his hometown for example, the poverty, high pregnancy rate, including no running water.
When Shabangu is not juggling school and the show, he plays basketball for the Wits Noswal Residence and is involved in the Campus Outreach Programme.
One Day Leader is broadcast every Monday at 16:30 on SABC 1. To vote for Shabangu sms “Leader 6” to 34020.
One step closer to One Day Leader
Seadimo Tlale, One Day Leader number 2, dominating at debating.
Photo: Facebook
Seadimo Tlale is the last Witsie standing in SABC’s One Day Leader contest.
The show that aims to find future leaders of the country will soon be coming to an end. With only 3 contestants left, the pressure is on for Tlale to represent Wits, as well as being the last female in the competition.
When asked what got her this far in the competition, Tlale said: “People like the way I reason and stand by what I believe in regardless of what anybody says.”
Known for her skills in debating, Tlale can proudly say that she has won the most debates this season, despite the fact that she is the youngest contestant to ever make it this far.
“The quality that made me stand out the most was that people were amazed about how age is not a factor for me. I go out and achieve what I set to do,” said Tlale.
The finale airs on Mothers Day, Sunday May 12, where the decision will be made on who will be South Africa’s One Day Leader 2013.
With faith and assurance, Tlale is ready to go all the way. She said: “I have overcome great obstacles by challenging very strong opponents with confidence.”
To support your fellow Witsie SMS “Leader 2” to 34068.
Two Witsies make top six in SABC’s ‘One Day Leader’
Seadimo Tlale, above, in the ‘One Day Leader’ reality show.
SEADIMO Tlale and Anele Nzimande, LLB Law students at Wits, are part of the final six contestants on the reality show, One Day Leader.
The show airs every Sunday at 6.30pm and sees young people tackling economic, social and political issues. They compete against each other in an effort find one future social leader for South Africa.
Wits Vuvuzela spoke to Tlale, a first year at Wits and the youngest in the competition. She explained how being on a TV show is not as glamorous as one would think.
“It’s more work than it is glamour. It’s that one hour on Sunday when you’re on TV, and three hours after that when your inbox is full because everybody’s texting you. That’s the glamorous side, then after that it’s just work, work, work,” Tlale said.
Despite the work, Tlale is thankful to have been given this opportunity to be on the show.
“I actually get to inspire a lot of people. So many people look up to me, I walk around on campus and people are like ‘Sea right? One Day Leader!’ and I’m like ‘what? Do people even watch the show?’.”
Tlale told Wits Vuvuzela that one of the major issues affecting students is that some of them express apathy towards politics and feel like political issues don’t concern them. They think someone else is dealing with the country’s challenges and they can remain ignorant of what is going on.
“I think politics is the one thing that brings us together, despite our differences as people. It’s the one platform where we can come together, be one and take a stand to actively shape our own future. To change our communities, to change everything that’s happening in our lives as students,” she said.
Tlale manages to balance her studies with being a TV star and accredits this to her passion and love for what she does.
“If you know what you want and keep focus, it’s easy to do everything and that’s how I do so much.” Tlale is part of the Wits debating team, the Black Lawyers Association, the ‘One Day Without Shoes’ initiative and a member of the model UN.
Anele Nzimande, also in ‘One Day Leader’
Wits Vuvuzela could not get in touch with Anele Nzimande. But on her One day Leader website profile, she said: “My gender, age, socio-economic status and accomplishments are secondary to my South African-ness. I am a South African first, and we have a history of revolutionary leaders who were unapologetic and uncompromising about their vision.
“There is no mathematical formula that exists when it comes to leadership but it is important to have a healthy balance of humility and fearlessness,’ Nzimande said.
Tlale explains that a leader is someone who stays relevant to what is needed within a community. Someone who is persistent but humble and someone who others feel inspired by.
Both girls want to use their influence to encourage change and give people access to opportunities and stress the importance of education.
To vote for Seadimo on One Day Leader, SMS: “Leader 2” to 34068. To vote for Anele, SMS: “Leader 4” to 34068
Morris makes a mark
FORMER Wits SRC president Morris Masutha has made it to the top six of local reality television show One Day Leader.
One Day Leader promotes young leaders by giving contestants a topic and having them debate and argue their positions. Contestants also go on challenges to different neighbourhoods.
Masuthu said the show was “very challenging” because they only talk about the topic on the day of the show.
“It eliminates the boys from the men,” he said.
Masuthu lives in a house with his fellow top six contestants in Cresta. While he lauds the abilities of some of his competitors “others you obviously wonder how they got there.”
“Sometimes you can be the best guy but if people don’t vote for you then it doesn’t matter,” Masuthu said. One Day Leader is in its second season on SABC1.
The previous winner of the show was a Witsie, Lesley Masibi.
Masutha said he joined the show to advocate free education and to put the spotlight on the plight of rural youth through his non-profit organisation, the Thusanani Foundation.
Hailing from a rural village in Limpopo, Masutha said he started the foundation because he felt the need to bridge the information gap between rural youths and their urban counterparts. He said Wits was his salvation and ticket out of the village but when he arrived on the campus for his first year he felt intimidated by his lack of knowledge.
“When I came to Wits, I felt embarrassed to speak in class because I didn’t want to embarrass myself,” said Masutha. “I could barely speak English so for a while I was this quiet guy at the back of the class.”
One day a fellow student made a comment that offended Masutha and he was moved to speak up for the first time ever. “At that point I didn’t care that my English wasn’t good,” said Masutha. From that day forward, Masutha has not stopped speaking up for what he believes in.
He spoke in large lectures when there was a racist or ignorant comment made, he spoke his way to his SRC presidency in 2011 and now he speaks on a national TV show. Masutha said the hardships he faced at Wits gave him the confidence to speak the way that he does.
“I love Wits, it’s made me into the person I am today, and it really does ‘give you the edge’,” said Masutha. “You go into an interview and you find you are interviewing the interviewer.”
Masutha said education was the only hope of anyone who comes from a rural area.
“Those of you Witsies coming from disadvantaged backgrounds, you will encounter many stumbling blocks at university but if you work harder, your marks will pay for your fees.”
The 2011 winner was given an “internship in the office of the NYDA, a trip to visit a South African ambassador of a country of their choice, a day spent with the State President and a R70 000 budget to spend on a project in a community of their choice” and R20 000 cash.
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