By Malikhanye Mankayi
A wonderful time unfolded at the Joza Youth Hub Open Day on Saturday, 3 June, which provided kids and parents the best platform to come and see what is being done by the children who attend the hub.
For the young children of Makhanda, this was an exciting day involving games, competitions and activities. The emcees of the day were Sesethu Mtshelu and Zukhanye Myeka, with live music by Access Music Project (AMP) to get everyone dancing. A traffic police officer educated younger children on the rules of the road. The officer warned that children who walk around wearing earphones must stop doing so. He added that those who use overloaded scholar transport should report this to their parents, as it is unsafe. The children were also given the opportunity to drive toy motorbikes and acknowledge road signs.
On the Open Mic platform were children showcasing their talents in poetry, hip-hop music, love songs, dancing and local music called Amagwijo. This was the best moment for the young adults, as most were craving to light the stage on fire.
The jumping castle, always a good tool to make young souls happier, saw every child having an opportunity to jump – after having their faces painted. There was also a computer lab competition – a great moment at the open day, especially when the children highlighted that most local schools either have very small computer labs, or no computer labs at all.
The Joza Karate club has been in existence since 2004 when it was founded by Mzwandile Matebese (Fourth Dan black belt), who is still the club’s head coach. Matebese demonstrated some karate techniques and club members put on a display for the audience.
Ward Two councillor, Rami Xonxa of the ANC said the social innovation hub was doing an amazing thing for the community, because it provides wifi to community members, which allows them to access the internet, and keeps the children busy in the afternoons.
Thandiwe Matyhobeni from Rhodes University Community Engagement also spoke at the event, saying “We work very much with Joza Youth Hub around computer literacy and digital stories, where we try to get an idea of what people’s experiences are in Makhanda,” she said.
Kwathitha Tyukana, a 17 year old a member of Joza Karate, told Grocott’s Mail about the importance of learning karate at a young age. “I was bullied at school. My sister told me about the Joza Karate Club. When I started there, I felt nervous but at the ultimate end, I decided to join the club and now am able to defend myself,” said Tyukana.
“Today was a great day seeing some of the activities that are done in the Joza Youth Hub. Some I was not aware of, and now I wish I could own my own musical instrument,” said Tyukana.
