Bityi duo empowers the youth
AN IDLE mind is the devil’s workshop, says a wellknown English idiom. In the South African context, lots of young people find themselves on the wrong side of the law while others end up dying after being caught up in a cycle of drug abuse.
Teenage pregnancy has also become a major problem in many a home.
Madosini village – one of the many villages under the Bityi administrative area on the outskirts of Mthatha – has found itself grappling with the same problem for many years.
Young people frequent taverns where fights break out, leading to some being stabbed.
Some of the young people even find themselves experimenting with hard drugs while crime incidents, such as housebreaking, has become a norm in the area for years.
But two adults in the village took it upon themselves to rid their beloved village of its bad reputation.
Despite a lack of financial resources they are using sport, dance and a range of other art forms to keep young children off the streets.
It all started when Xolisa Timakhwe, 45, and fellow villager Busiswa Nkenkana, 39, noticed that criminal elements were threatening to derail young people from attaining brighter futures.
In 2013 the duo established the Bityi Cooperative which they use as a vehicle to transform the lives of about 70 villagers between the ages of six to 30.
“In Bityi there are no jobs, while most children cannot even go beyond Grade 12 because of their financial situation,” said Timakhwe, who survives by running a small spaza shop at his home.
“Even those who manage to go to university, cannot find accommodation and return. In the end, you have a lot of young people sitting idle in the village with nothing to do. Some end up smoking dagga and go to taverns to pass the time.”
Timakhwe said the situation was made worse by the fact that most youths were being raised by their grandparents as their parents worked in far-off cities, such as Johannesburg, Cape Town and Port Elizabeth. Others had to fend for themselves as they were orphaned.
“With drugs, the young people end up stealing from villagers to fuel their addiction.”
Others ended up stealing from their own grandparents who were entrusted with raising them into upstanding adults.
Nkenkana said they had spoken to young people in the village about their idea and many of them were excited. Through the cooperative, they introduced many of them to traditional, gumboot and modern dancing, as well as choral music, modelling, soccer, netball and drum majorettes.
“What is exciting is that we use the same children to teach others the moves,” said Nkenkana, who also acts as conductor for the Bityi choir.
“We made mistakes when we grew up. Some of us fell pregnant at an early age and this didn’t help at all as some are now struggling as adults. We warn the youngsters about the dangers they will come across and how to overcome them.”
From Mondays to Fridays, the youngest children, mostly those who take part in gumboot dancing and modelling, converge on Timakhwe’s home where they practise from 2pm to 4pm. Afterwards, the much older ones take over from 5pm to 6.30pm.
Nkenkana said even parents who had problems with their children, were now approaching the cooperative to intervene and sort them out.
“We try to teach them the value of respect by instilling a sense of discipline. We educate them to respect themselves first.”
One of those who has benefited from Timakhwe and Nkenkana’s efforts is Grade 10 pupil Yolanda Mjacu, who joined the choir earlier this year.
The Milton Mbekela Senior Secondary School pupil is one of the most accomplished choir members but is also responsible for teaching others modelling, netball and drum majorettes.
She said she felt comfortable talking to her peers and the two founders about life challenges rather than to her own parents.
Although she is passionate about choral music, she wants to become a doctor when she grows up. She said she believed that with the support and guidance from