Lucas Mahlakgane, chairperson of World Changers Candidate, a non-profit organisation that is fighting against the problem of drug use among high school learners, took a group of young people from the drug-infested Leondale High School on a tour of historic sites in Soweto.
This is as some of the learners who have become ambassadors against drug use are set to participate in various development programmes, locally and abroad.
Among them is a 17-year-old girl who has been accepted to participate in the UN Best Diplomats Conference to be held from March 10 to 13, 2025, in New York, US.
The Best Diplomats US Conference is an educational simulation of the UN which engages the youth from across the globe, helping them learn more about the principles of the UN and how it functions.
“As World Changers Candidate, we are doing various interventions and one of them started at Leondale High School in 2022 after a video of the learners smoking dagga within the school premises went viral. We adopted the school and we participated in changing some aspects on the Bela Bill which we succeeded through our advocacy work.
“Now we are here to teach them about the Soweto uprising and how young people took the fight to the street when they fought against Afrikaans being imposed on them. We are saying young people have a duty to fight the scourge of drugs just like these young pupil did in 1976,” he said.
On Saturday, Mosala Mosegomi, the author of “Soweto Explodes”, who was arrested shortly before the June 16, 1976 Soweto uprising, took these young learners on a tour of the Tsietsi Mashinini Museum, the Hector Pieterson Memorial in Orlando West and the site of the uprising on Vilakazi Street, just a stone’s throw from Nelson Mandela and Desmond Tutu’s former homes.
Buchule Bede, one of the young people who are taking part in the programme, commended the work done by World Changers Candidate.
“I am happy to be part of the programme and today was very exciting and insightful for me as a young person. I have learnt a lot about the work of the young people who took part in the 1976 uprising. It has opened up my eyes on their contribution,” she said.
Mahlakgane said it was important to keep young people engaged at all times, especially during school holidays, as they usually get into a lot of trouble with free time on their hands.
“On an ordinary Saturday when most young people in our country will be indulging in drugs, more especially with the schools being closed. World Changers Candidate gets involved with community programmes such as part of Anti- Substance Abuse outreach programmes to empower and mentor young people,” he added.
A group of learners from World Changers Candidate recently launched an online petition on June 26 (World Drug Day) titled change.org. The petition calls for the reformation of drug laws in the country, including tougher sentences for persons found in possession of drugs, and they are soliciting support for the petition through signatures.
The Star