By Selenathi Botha
I am Selenathi Botha. I am 21 years old and live in Makhanda, in a place called Hlalani. I attended C.M. Vellem Primary School and then Khutliso Daniels Secondary School, where I passed my matric and later joined the Assumption Development Centre’s Journalism internship programme at Grocott’s Mail.
I am a very outspoken person. I love to read and write. I enjoy outdoor activities. I’m very good at working with other people. I’m a good listener too.
What I learned since I joined Grocott’s Mail is that I get to represent voiceless people. I learned to write about the challenges that people face each and every day. I’ve also learned to value and listen to people’s complaints, concerns, views, and opinions. But mostly, I have learned to be creative.
What I have taken away from this experience is that everything is a story or can be a story, and to never underestimate anything when it comes to life. To look at things from all different angles. Going forward, I would still like to speak and write on behalf of those who don’t have the tools to speak about their problems.
I want to be the voice of Makhanda. I want to be that one person who spreads both good and bad news to people. I want to work very hard, so that I don’t need to represent or introduce myself anymore, because my work will speak for itself.
(Selenathi Botha is a 2023 Grocott’s Mail intern, and writes regularly for the newspaper).
