Young people were given a chance to show off their talents at the township talent show at Shabalala Secondary School Hall on September 30.
According to the organiser of the event, Bongani Mathebula, the show was organised to give locals a chance to showcase their talents and to keep young people off the streets.
“I have realised that most of the young people are involved in criminal activities and substance abuse because they have nothing to do in their area. I came up with the talent show so that the youth from this area can be kept busy. We invited a lot of people to scout the participants in the hope that their dreams will come true,” he said.
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He added that the show will be an annual event as it proved very popular, with a large number of young people turning up to support the initiative.
“I noticed that a lot of people who attended the event were hungry for something like this and they requested that we should have it every quarter. But due to financial constraints and lack of sponsorship this will be difficult. However, I am inviting local businesses to come on board and assist where they can. This initiative will help a lot in reducing crime and making sure that young people don’t engage themselves in any wrongdoing,” he said.
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One of the participants, Nomcebo Mbuyane, told Hazyview Herald that there is a lot of talent in the villages, but there are limited platforms for them to showcase it.
He said there are no recreational centres and this was one of the reasons why young people turn to substance abuse and crime – “because that is the only thing that is available for them”.
“We need something like this to keep us busy in our villages and we also need more centres where we can show off our talent. We do not have such in thing in our communities, but we have taverns every corner. I would like to thank the organisers for such a great initiative,” she said.
The overall winner of the show, the Siyaphambili Cultural Group, will be treated to a dinner at one of the local hotels and a game drive, and they also received a trophy.
