Johannesburg - Veteran actor Vusi Thanda joins a list of locals who have been appointed as creative sector ambassadors by Minister of Sport, Arts, and Culture Zizi Kodwa.
Kodwa, who has been taking bold steps to heed the calls made by local creatives, shared this news on his Twitter account.
"As far as we are all concerned as South Africans, Vusi Thanda is a great talent; many of our young actors grew up watching him, and we still see him on TV today. We've approached him to be part of our Creative Sector Ambassadors and to work with us to better arts and culture," said Kodwa.
This happened months after there had been reports the Thespian had not been financially stable for quite a long time, and he summoned the courage to reveal his banking details and appealed for donations and support.
Fans, local celebrities, and brands joined hands and assisted the actor in different ways.
Kicks Sportswear was among the brands that pledged to support the actor when they celebrated a two-year milestone last year.
"I am officially saying goodbye to poverty. I don't want to touch a cent of this money, but instead, I want to invest it because that was one mistake I made in the past. I have learned my lesson and never want to misuse money again. Thank you to the Kicks team for standing by me through this very difficult time. May God bless all of you," said Thanda as he accepted a cheque from the brand.
After being appointed, Kodwa vowed to make amendments in the creative sector after hearing about woes shattering the sector.
"I must admit that as a country and probably as the government, we have not appreciated the role of arts and culture.
"When I attended the Royal Soapie Awards on Saturday, one of the people whom I met is Oledy. And I thought that one of the people that I must meet, given what she said, is to gain some more information and wisdom from her. I heard some of the most disturbing things that she said on Saturday, which shouldn't be an issue in 2023. She has been in the space for more than 20 years, but she still gets up in the early hours for auditions on set the whole day. I don't think that’s right. By now, she will be 71 in June, and she should be enjoying her royalties. She should be going to act because she wants to, not because she has to.
"And I am saying there is something that we have not done. I must admit that, as a country and probably as a government, we have not appreciated the role of the arts and culture. And I am talking about the economy of arts and culture. Most successful companies take arts and culture seriously. And I think we need to get back and make sure that people like her can be used to make sure that they work together. And as you can see behind her, she has a school training young ones," Kodwa said.
The Star