In an impassioned speech in 2015, former state president Nelson Rolihlahla Mandela said “Like slavery and apartheid, poverty is not natural. It is man-made and it can be overcome and eradicated by the actions of human beings. And overcoming poverty is not a gesture of charity. It is an act of justice.” It is against this backdrop that Linhleko Projects, an industrial solutions company, has supported and invested in truly worthy cause during Mandela Month.
Linhleko Projects committed to building walls for the SOS Children’s Village in Rustenburg, a gesture that was welcomed by centre manager Mpho Madiba on Friday, 16 July. The center’s doors were opened in 2005 and its existence is dependent on partnerships formulated with stakeholders.
Madiba said they were grateful to Linhleko Projects which is assisting to address some of the security concerns experienced by the SOS Children’s Village. “We house about 80 orphaned and vulnerable children in our communities. The houses which accommodate them do not have the necessary security that is required from a safety perspective to protect them from any criminal elements. We are really grateful to Linhleko Projects for building walls around our properties, which will help to protect our children,” she stated.
When the team at Linhleko Projects visited the center, construction of the walls was already underway. CEO Buang Moloto expressed his delight at the sight of the construction workers digging trenches in preparation of setting up the structures. Speaking at the official handover, Moloto said that this was a legacy project that emanated from a letter received from the SOS Children’s Village, which requested a donation as part of their fundraising initiative to build walls on site with the aim to protect the children. “Initially, due to the COVID-19 pandemic and the impact it had on businesses across the country, we had to hold back from assisting with this project. However, once our business was able to bounce back, one of our priorities was to ensure that we fulfilled our commitment to the children of the SOS Children’s Village.”
Elaborating further, Moloto said: “As corporate South Africa and citizens of this country, we must never forget the impact and spirit of ‘Ubuntu’ in alleviating poverty. Linhleko Projects is driven by a culture that is strongly underpinned by a social conscious in everything we do, and one in which we strive to positively impact the communities that we work in,” he said.
The center requested assistance with the construction of walls but Linhleko Projects also provided much-needed hygiene products and toiletries, which will go a long way in assisting the children of the SOS Children’s Village .
We have a vision in which such initiatives have a long-term impact with the communities that we assist. We will continue to strengthen our relationship with the SOS Children’s Village in Rustenburg – in fact we hope that in the future some of the children will work for Linhleko. We also hope that we can make a difference one day by perhaps sponsoring bursaries to some of these children and facilitating their education. We believe in creating a long-term legacy that is founded on a good education to help support many communities that are neglected and do not have access to many opportunities.,” added Moloto.
Refiloe Mankga, director at Linhleko Projects, also shared the same sentiment. She was appreciative of the collaboration on this project and has a desire for this initiative to result in a lasting relationship between the two organisations. “We look forward to becoming part of the growth story of the SOS Children’s Village and assist as best we can. This is only the beginning and going forward we will continue to work together to build strong communities,” she concluded.
