Granny moved to tears
COFIMVABA Senior Secondary School matriculant Mphoentle Piliso, who came second in the quintile 3 schools in South Africa and third in the Eastern Cape in the 2017 matric exams, moved her grandmother to tears last week.
The Chris Hani District East pupil’s 63-year-old grandmother, Buyiswa Piliso, broke down in tears as she paid tribute to Mphoentle's mother, who died when she was two, saying she would have been proud.
Mphoentle, who is originally from Butterworth, is part of a family where the whole household relies on Buyiswa's grant to take care of the family of three grandchildren, two uncles, an aunt and the grandmother.
Mphoentle, the eldest grandchild, said she was motivated to study hard because she wanted to support her grandmother to take care of the family.
“Nationally I achieved second position in
quintile 3 and came third in the Eastern Cape based on overall marks, with seven distinctions. I will study to be a doctor at the University of Cape Town and when I qualify I will specialise in cardiology.
“The situation at home motivated me to study every moment I had. I love my grandmother because she has sacrificed so much for me. When my mother died, my father disappeared and my grandmother became my mother. I cannot find the words to describe how much I love her.”
Mphoentle said she nearly cried when she was honoured on January 4 in Johannesburg by Basic Education Minister Anjie Motshekga and in the Eastern Cape by Premier Phumulo Masualle.
Buyiswa, in tears, said: “I did not think she would be able to write the final exam because from September to December she was sick and had difficulty breathing. The school would call me to fetch her or inform me that she was in hospital on oxygen and the doctors could not identify the problem.
“During that time I prayed hard because her condition was bad. The family supported Mpho. She loves to study. I even had to stop her from studying during the holidays.”
Although it would hurt to say goodbye to her granddaughter as she headed off to university, she would release her to do what she had been born to do, the grandmother said.