In preparation, Bush Radio trainees have been collecting the opinions and questions from people all over Cape Town. All the participants were asked; If you had the opportunity to ask the president to address something that affects you, what would it be?
We are inviting you to share your views with us on a special “Expectations” edition of Backchat on Bush Radio 89,5FMwith Bassie Montewa on Wednesday, 9 February 2017 from 2pm to 4pm.
Thousands of people flocked to the Cape Town Stadium to celebrate the life of the late Former President Nelson Mandela on Wednesday. Madiba died at his Johannesburg home on Thursday evening, at the age of 95.
The function started with performances from various local artists which was followed by the National Anthem where the crowed sung in unity.
Chairperson of the African National Congress in the Western Cape Marius Fransman saluted the former icon for the role he played in the struggle and uniting the people of South Africa.
Fransman said we remember you as a freedom fighter, a revolutionary, activist and the father of the nation. The spirit of tata Mandela is already affecting us, let’s continue emulating his legacy.
The atmosphere was joyous with several people holding placards of Madiba, with many wearing Madiba t-shirts chanting Rolihlahla.
After MC Shado Twala opened the service, Cape Town Mayor Patricia de Lille took the podium where she described Mandela as a leader, a visionary and the very best among us.
“I say that we must choose to live hope, I say that we must choose to live in the world of the vision of Mandela, I say we must make Tata Madiba to live forever in our efforts to make South Africa a country he will be proud of” De Lille added.
Western Cape Premier Helen Zille told the crowd of her privilege of seeing Madiba earlier in the day as he laid in state at the Union Buildings in Pretoria. She opened the stage by singing a struggle song “uMadiba abazenge bam’mbone,”
Zille said Madiba was in peace and his face symbolized what South Africa has become, one nation at peace with ourselves and the world, one nation building one future.
Minister in the Presidency Trevor Manuel closed by saying Madiba belonged to all of us and we will celebrate him together as the spirit of Madiba lives inside us all.
But even as we grieve for the father of our nation, we remember that Madiba represented hope – hope that dedication, perseverance and going beyond individual goals is noble and worthy. Bush Radio,together with all South Africans, mourn the passing of Nelson Mandela – freedom fighter, our first president and an inspiration to the world.
Nelson Rolihlahla Mandela – July 18, 1918 – December 5, 2013
Nelson Mandela Biography:Nelson Rolihlahla Mandela was born in Mvezo, a village near Mbatha in the Transkei, on July 18, 1918. His father, Henry Mgadla Mandela, was the principal councillor to the Acting Paramount Chief of the Thembu and Mandela was preparing to eventually take over the position after his father’s death. But Mandela had dreams of helping his people in the fight for freedom.
He was educated at a local mission school where he was given the name Nelson. After his primary education, he was sent to Heraldtown, a Wesleyan secondary school. He then enrolled at Fort Hare where he was elected onto the Students’ Representatives Council. He was suspended from university for joining a protest. Then he and his cousin ran away to Johannesburg to escape arranged marriages.
He completed his Bachelor of Arts degree through the University of South Africa and then began studying for his LLB. He joined the African National Congress in 1943, a year after he graduated. In the midst of his political activities, he met his first wife, Evelyn Mase. A few months after meeting, they were married and eventually had four children. They divorced in 1958.
In 1944, a group of 60 young ANC members, including Mandela, joined forces to create the African National Congress Youth League, which hoped to transform the ANC into a more radical movement. They thought that the current political tactics would never emancipate South Africa. Mandela was elected as the league’s national secretary in 1948. Mandela impressed his peers with his disciplined and hard-working ways and was elected to the NEC.
He later became president of the youth league, and was elected National Volunteer-in-Chief in 1952 just as the ANC launched its Campaign for the Defiance of Unjust Laws, which involved mass civil disobedience. Mandela travelled the country organising resistance to discriminatory legislation. As a result, Mandela was given a suspended prison sentence for defying the Suppression of Communism Act and was confined to Johannesburg for 6 months.
Also in 1952 he opened South Africa’s first black law firm in Johannesburg with his friend Oliver Tambo. But under the land segregation legislation, the authorities demanded that they move their practice out of the city. Mandela and Tambo refused. During the early fifties, Mandela led the resistance against the Western Area removals, Bantu Education and the Freedom Charter.
During the fifties, Mandela was banned, arrested and imprisoned. And he vowed to not follow the rules and regulations of his oppressors. In 1958, Mandela married Nomzamo Winnie Mandela. They had no time for a honeymoon because Nelson had to appear in court for the Treason Trial. He was one of the 156 people accused in the Treason Trial.
His incarceration put a damper on his political and legal work. After the Treason Trial collapsed in 1961, the ANC was banned and Nelson Mandela emerged as its underground leader. In March of 1961 Mandela addressed the All-in African Conference and challenged the apartheid regime to create a new, democratic constitution. He then went underground to lead the campaign. Mandela had many disguises to evade the police, which earned him the name the Black Pimpernel. He and other ANC leaders created a new section of the liberation movement that prepared for an armed struggle. He felt that continuing non-violent tactics was unrealistic since the government continued to meet their peaceful efforts with violence.
Mandela travelled abroad to Swaziland in 1962 and was arrested shortly after his return to South Africa for illegally leaving the country. He acted as his own defence attorney during the trial and was convicted and sentenced to five years of prison. He was transferred to Robben Island in May 1963. He and 10 others were charged with sabotage shortly after.
The Rivonia Trial lasted 8 months. Mandela decided that if given the death sentence, he would not appeal because he was prepared to die for his ideals. Mandela was found guilty and sentenced to life in prison on Robben Island. After 18 years at Robben Island, Mandela was transferred to Pollsmoor Prison in Cape Town in 1982 and then to Victor Verster Prison near Paarl in 1988. While in prison, Mandela refused to accept Bantustan policy in December 1988 in exchange for a reduced sentence. He also refused release from prison in exchange for renouncing violence.
In prison, Mandela started a dialogue with the government based on the following conditions:
– The release of all political prisoners
– The unbanning of all banned organisations
– The return of all exiles
– The unconditional disbanding of Apartheid and all its laws
He was released from prison on February 11, 1990, and worked diligently to free South Africa from apartheid. In 1991 he was elected President of the ANC. In 1993 Mandela accepted the prestigious Nobel Peace Prize on behalf of all South Africans who worked so hard and suffered so much to achieve peace. After apartheid officially ended on April 27, 1994, Mandela and all South Africans voted for the first time. Mandela was elected as President of a democratic South Africa and was inaugurated on May 10, 1994. He served one term as president until 1999. After retiring from politics, Mandela went on to set up three foundations: The Nelson Mandela Foundation, The Nelson Mandela Children’s Fund, and The Mandela-Rhodes Foundation. After his presidency, he continued his tireless efforts to foster democracy and equality and help the oppressed and deprived.
He will always be a hero not only to the South African people, but also to the world.
On the 18th of May 2011, South Africans took to the polls to put their mark in the fourth Local Government Elections. The race to the elections was an interesting one. Political parties pulled out all the stops to ensure that they received as many votes as possible, and the battle for the Western Cape was especially hotly contested.
With the help of these students, we brought you live reports from voting stations all over Cape Town. Together with our regular newsteam these students were our roaming reporters on the day as well as bringing reports and live programmes from the IEC results centre until the final results were announced.
Here the students share their experiences of being trained, working with, and reporting for Bush Radio with you:
“The 2011 local government elections were a nail-biting event, as it saw the leading party, the ANC and the official opposition the DA pulling out all stops to win the votes of the many registered South African voters. Being in the middle of this highly contested election was both a very nerve-wracking and very exciting experience for me. Reporting live for Bush Radio and speaking with both for time and regular was an experience that I will cherish for a very long time.”
Bhekimpilo Dungeni
“Working with Bush Radio is certainly great, but to get to cover the 2011 Local Government Elections and get to interview candidate councillors for different wards was an opportunity to die for. As a young and aspiring journalist, I had the opportunity to mingle with different political officials as they made their last minute rounds before the voting stations doors closed at 7pm on Election Day. It was a great experience being live on radio for the first time, although nervous at first, but it kept me on the edge and it became the drive for me to deliver the best of my ability. I am certainly looking forward to working with Bush Radio in future, and I thank the whole team at Bush Radio who went out of their way to make sure we were ready for the big day. Thank you to our CPUT colleagues and lecturer Mr Shepi Mati for believing in us.”
“When they told us we are going to be reporting live from our voting stations, I was nervous. I didn’t know how to feel, what to feel. When I started that morning it was cold but I made the most of it. As the time for my live cross approached, my heart was beating faster. But after that it went better. Despite me being nervous, I was excited at the time. I was going to vote for the very first time. That experience cannot be put into words. I sounded somewhat professional although I’m still a student. The Bush Radio team put a great deal of energy and faith into training us for this particular task and they are great for that. Not forgetting Mr. Mati for all his awesomeness.”
Thapelo Sodinga
“As a young journalist and a person who is studying journalism at the Cape Peninsula University of Technology, being on the field is the most important thing that I always wished would happen in my career. On the 18th may 2011, I can say my dream had come true. The experience that I had during the IEC local government elections was quite a phenomenal one. My experience of the day is really indescribable working with Bush Radio. And of course talking with the Congress of the People (COPE) candidate Mr Phinda Siyo on the day was such an exciting moment for me. Getting to know the process of those elections was also a wonderful experience for me. Lastly, thanks to Bush Radio who gave us such platform to showcase our skills.”
Lauren Petersen
“The Municipal elections are always very exciting but this year it was even more exciting. The reason for this is because I reported live for Bush Radio about the events happening in my area on that day. At first I was nervous because thousands of people will be listening to me, not to mention my family as well. I’m glad everything went smooth though, and according to plan. I enjoyed every moment of it, even standing in the cold and coming home with a headache it was all worth it. Thank you to the Bush Radio Team for giving me the opportunity to be a real journalist for a day.”
Dylan Oktober
“Covering the local government elections was an exceptional experience from the time I arrived at the voting station till the time the voting station closed. It was exciting reporting the happenings of the day as well as interviewing people from different walks of life. I must admit that reporting for the first time was nerve-wracking and required a lot of work as the day progressed but I was able to handle the pressure and deliver a product with which I am satisfied with. I feel privileged for being given the opportunity to report for Bush Radio and I am thankful for the staff’s support throughout the day.”
Baden Gillion
“The experience of working as a journalist reporting on the local elections has been one of the highlights of my life and the memories will always stay with me. The highlights for me were reporting for Bush on the voting process at my local voting stations, to co-hosting the live radio show, Backchat, interviewing Marius Fransman, the Chairperson of the ANC. The absolute best moment was breaking a news story about an investigation into an IEC official before any other media house. This has been an amazing life experience and I’d like to thank Bush Radio for giving me this opportunity.”
“Bush Radio has granted me one of the greatest experiences in my life. For the first time since I’ve started my studies I felt like a “real” journalist. My highlights include every second spent at the IEC Results Centre, where I interviewed various politicians, lined up various politicians alongside my fellow student journalists, including getting the Tony Ehrenreich interview for the coveted 7 o’clock spot, ahead of other media institutions. Also co-hosting Backchat along with my fellow student journalists was a nerve-wracking but ultimately awesome experience. I would like to express my gratitude towards Bush Radio for handing us this opportunity which has helped us to become better journalists. Also a special thanks to Lusanda, Khanyisa and Freedom for showing us the ropes first hand, you guys were awesome.”
“Every student has a particular inclination or plateau within their chosen field of study which they aspire to, something that makes them say “I could do that” or “that will be me in ten years”. Personally, one of these inclinations has always been radio journalism, so when the opportunity to work and gain real-life experience with the Bush Radio team was made available to me, saying that I was excited would probably be the understatement of the year. From the very start of our “working week” all of the students involved were made to feel welcome and part of the team, even though we had very important tasks to perform under the Bush Radio banner: Live coverage in residential areas of the 2011 IEC Municipal elections and coverage of all the happenings at the IEC results centre afterwards, which culminated in myself and three of my class-mates co-hosting Backchat. I would just like to thank the Bush Radio crew as a whole, because by the end of the week I was looking at people within the journalism profession whom I admire and saying: “I did that” and “that was me yesterday”.
For the past few weeks we have been getting nine first-year journalism students from the Cape Peninsula University of Technology ready to assist our newsroom trainees to ensure that we have on-the-ground coverage of the elections.
Our LGE2011 team will be bring you updates and live reports from Mitchells Plain to Khayelitsha, Kensington to Belhar and Wynberg through to Bellville. They will be filing reports from 7am through to after the polls close at 7pm.
Stay tuned for the newsteam’s wrap-up programme of the day’s events from 7 to 8pm.
We will also be based at the IEC Operations Centre until the final results are released, bringing you any alerts and results as they become available.
So tune into 89.5 FM or online and on your mobile.
Independent: Thembisile Mbenenene, Lusanda Bill (Bushnews), Mario Wanza
Catch the forth of a series of debates with political parties contesting the 2011 Local Government Elections in the Western Cape on Newsline tonight (12 May 2011) at 7pm, repeated Friday at 8pm.
Tonight the Bushnews team spoke to two independent candidates.
Left to Right: Mawethu Wiseman Mdude (African People's Convention), Khanyisa Tabata (Bushnews), Andre Fourie (Freedom Front Plus) and Abdurrazak Ebrahim (National Freedom Party)
Catch the third of a series of debates with political parties contesting the 2011 Local Government Elections in the Western Cape on Newsline tonight (5 May 2011) at 7pm, repeated Friday at 8pm.
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