Sbusiso Leope visited Katlehong’s Palm Ridge Extension 6 Secondary School to give a motivational talk on Tuesday, January 31.
Leope, known as DJ Sbu, was accompanied by the members of the DJ Sbu Foundation.
One of the foundation’s members, Ntombi Ngcobo Mzolo, the daughter of the famous maskandi musician Ihashi Elimhlophe (Bheki Ngcobo), said learners must know who they are.
“It is important to know who you are before somebody else tells you who you are, because you might end up being what people say you are.
“All people have challenges in life, but it is up to you to decide if the challenges break you or build you,” said Mzolo.
Mzolo, who presents the breakfast show on Metro FM, said success is in one’s mind.
“I come from a family where my father was suffering from hunger. He quit school and started work at the age of 10 because he wanted to help his family. Today he owns houses and cars. He also raised successful children. So it is all in your mind,” said Mzolo.
Mzolo, who has a four-year-old daughter, said the reason she is so happy in her marriage is that she took care of herself.
“I was taught that a girl needs to abstain until she gets married. If you do that, you will be happy in your marriage because you will start your marriage without children born out of wedlock,” she said.
Mzolo concluded by saying that young people must stop drinking alcohol and rushing into having partners at a young age.
She said there is a lot of time for relationships when they are older.
Leope, a former presenter on the show Friends Like These on SABC 1, said learners can decide if they want to pass or fail.
“As it is the beginning of the year, you have a lot of time to make it work. Speak to your teachers and be willing to come to school for extra hours. Even on weekends, put more hours into your education.
“Each grade must help the lower grades. Grade 12 learners must help those in Grade 11, Grade 11 learners must help those in Grade 10 and so on. That will make it easy to achieve good pass marks at the end of the year.
“We are what we are today because we went through tough times in life. I grew up having nothing and had no school shoes. I didn’t have money to buy a new uniform. I wore a uniform that was given to me by a child from next door. But that didn’t break me, because I knew that with education, I was going to change my life and my family’s life,” said Leope.
Leope told learners that not all people will love them, but they will only see that once they are in trouble. “Right now it might look like everyone around you loves you, but that is not true,” he said.
