Ten distinctions for son of fallen Marikana police officer
Virginia Keppler
The son of a police officer who died during the 2012 Marikana wage protest is one of 455 beneficiaries of the South African Police Service Education Trust (Sapset), and has graduated with 10 distinctions for a national diploma in journalism.
Godfrey Monene, 22, graduated from Rosebank College in Johannesburg.
He said his late father, Warrant Officer Tsietsi Monene, would have been proud of him.
His father lost his life with a colleague, Sello Lepaku, while on duty during a wage protest in Marikana on August 13, 2012.
Sapset chief executive officer Catherine Hendricks said the trust was established in 2010, and its mandate was to look after the educational interests of children of deceased members of the police service.
The vision of the trust was to provide the best education and training for children of employees of the Saps who died in the line of duty, Hendricks said.
Since its inception, the trust has assisted 455 people from Grade R to tertiary level.
Many have enrolled at a number of universities, TVET institutions and private colleges across the country.
“To date, the Sapset has supported 93 tertiary and matric students, of whom 16 have successfully completed their studies,” Hendricks said.
Hendricks said Sapset was a nonprofit organisation, funded through donations.
Sapset stepped in to carry out the vision of assistance and “to ensure that children of deceased employees were looked after, not only financially, but also through emotional support”.
Monene said his journey had been very difficult since he lost his father. “But I managed to pull through since 2015, with the help of a study group of hard-working, dedicated students.
“I know that wherever he is, he is proud of me and my achievement.”