Gauteng Premier, David Makhura, officially launched the state-of-the-art Randfontein Community Library, situated in Aureus, on Wednesday, 13 March.
The facility, which is equipped with Wi-Fi, Mzansi Libraries Online Centre, a children and toddler area, a study centre, a computer lab and workstations that also cater for the blind and visually impaired, is said to be worth R25 million.
During the opening of the facility, Makhura said the construction and delivery of such facilities comes about as Gauteng continues to invest in its people, especially looking at educating, training and empowering young people.
“This facility will do more than serve people as a centre for learning, it will also be a hub for human interaction.
“It will and should provide opportunities to find jobs, to explore and research, and experience new ideas,” Makhura said.
Makhura went on to say libraries are supposed to be treated as sacred spaces of information and should never be destroyed.
“We are taking libraries to where people have never had proper libraries before. One of beauties of this library is that even those who are disabled will be catered for, because most of the time, these people are neglected. However, they too, have talents, aspirations and dreams, so they should given opportunities to upgrade their lives,” he said. Makhura said during the construction of the library, 69 people were employed.
Also celebrating the launch, the Executive Mayor of West Rand City Local Municipality, Mzi Khumalo, said the facility will create jobs, and develop and improve knowledge of the community as the culture of reading is encouraged.
The Mayor said the community has the responsibility to preserve and protect valuable public spaces such as the library. “No service delivery protest should involve the burning of any municipal infrastructure, therefore we urge you, even when you are disgruntled, not to vandalise public facilities. Rather just come to us. We must protest against what we do not have, and preserve what we have,” the Mayor added.
