Adam a shining example for our youth

About eight months ago, judges of The Herald — NMU Citizens of the Year competition sat around a boardroom table and discussed the voluminous entries received for the prestigious awards. It is a process that can take hours. Tucked away in the pack was a nomination for a pupil living in Despatch. It was an unassuming nomination containing one paragraph about why the nominator believed the young Khazimla Adam deserved recognition.

The nomination, for the most part, went unnoticed until the editor of this newspaper began to talk about the marvellous work this Woodridge pupil had done in her community and surrounding areas and why she should be considered for an award.

By then, aged 16, she was already involved in campaigns to help uplift the community — from cleanup projects to raising funds for a wheelchair and for families who had lost all their belongings.

The judges were swayed and Khazimla went on to win the award for the civil society category in 2023.

Sine then, Khazimla has gone on to achieve greater things. Not only is she the head girl at her school, she is Nelson Mandela Bay’s junior mayor and national youth parliament speaker and — as reported in this newspaper on Monday — she is now the SA Human Rights Commission children’s rights ambassador for the Eastern Cape.

She hopes to use this platform to highlight the plight of children in the province.

“Now I have the responsibility to go out there and make meaningful and robust engagements in the interest of my province of legends.

“Certain amendments are required to further protect children from cyber bullying.

“That is what we will be deliberating in the presence of national parliamentarians,” Khazimla said.

Not only is she an example to the youth on how to not let your age stand in the way of striving for leadership, Khazimla is the epitome of youth leadership that transcends mere rhetoric.

She gets actively involved in her community, making a meaningful impact as and where possible.

May she inspire other young people to not let systemic barriers impede their full potential.

Our future is in good hands if we have more young people like Khazimla rising through the ranks.