Mohamed Ameen Dabhelia – 2018/07/26

The Lenasia Muslim School in conjunction with the Habbatul Ilm Trust and the Jamiatul Ulama South Africa, officially handed over a skills center and library to the Reakgona Primary School in Fochville in the North West Province on Thursday.

#Education ???????? This is what the newly built resource center and library looks like… A collective effort between the Lenasia Muslim School and other organizations. @Lesufi @EducationGP pic.twitter.com/SEhFPAXsph

— Radio Islam (@radioislam) July 26, 2018

Among the high profile figures who attended the event were Secretary General of Jamiat SA Moulana Ebrahim Bham and Deputy Home Affairs Minister Fatima Chohan.

Chohan delivered the key note address during the handover.

She said that libraries are a monument to the past, but also an incubator to the future.

“We are busy building this nation after 300 years of oppression and suppression, so building a library is a good place to start.”

Chohan emphasized that South Africa currently faces changes like no other nation in the world.

“We want to build a nation with ‘people who are united in their diversity’, this has never been done.”

Chohan said that there is a misconception with regards to the education system in the country.

“There is a raging debate in society about the quality of education, actually when you look at the intellectually driven and content part of it, we have a very high standard in great tradition of British schools.”

Chohan added that she believes there is not enough focus on the ‘value aspect’ in our schools.

“I always say that when you educate a child, you have to educate their brain, but equally their heart.”

Chohan said she hopes that schools from more privileged areas will come on board and teach their learners the values of compassion, which will ensure that everyone has the same opportunities and respect.

The handover of the library was described as a noble effort by the students of LMS, who were instrumental in ensuring the funds were raised to initiate and complete the building of the center.

LMS Principal Nazrin Suliman said the decision to gift Reakgona Primary the fully resourced library, formed part of the school’s mandate for this year.

“We had settled upon a community project for this year, and our aim was to raise sufficient funds to set up this fully resourced library center, to be gifted to a school worthy of such a gesture.”

Suliman said the learners from the school were actively involved in the process of building the library.

“Our learners raised funds daily at the entrance of the school, our local shopping mall sponsored a stall over the weekends where learners collected funds, and students covered books that were purchased and packing the books on the shelf and setting up the library in the final stages, just before the handover.”

???? #Education The learners from LMS dedicated their weekends to raise funds for the newly built resource center and library. ???????????????????????? @Lesufi @GautengProvince pic.twitter.com/UVqDcesXwd

— Radio Islam (@radioislam) July 26, 2018

Jamiat SA’s Ml Ebrahim Bham said the handover is an important endeavor of collaboration required in South Africa and worthy of emulation.

“Each and every one must play their role. Remember that our destiny is linked to the destiny of one another, and I’m so pleased to realize that the meaning of Reakgona means ‘we can’.”

Ml Bham urged everyone in attendance to put their ‘shoulder to the wheel’ in order to make South Africa a better place.

“It’s impossible for you to say that Lenasia will be prosperous and Reakgona will not be prosperous, either we raise together or we fall together, either we prosper together or we go down in the drain together.”

The initiative is a collective effort between various organizations with an aim to establish additional education centers in under privileged communities across South Africa.