Mpanza Memorial

Mpanza

The 25 of August 2016 will forever be edged in my memory as the day I rediscovered the greatness of South Africa. My country of birth, my home country, a place where God released me in the universe. It is only when you understand the greatness and the vastness God that you truly appreciate his power to have placed you at a particular time and place according to his wishes. This is in my opinion a privilege to know and understand the power of God.

Anyway, accept the highway, the subway and the tunnel as we used to say in my Suburb of Pimville Soweto. Today, I was transformed to my youth at the age of 16/17 years of age because most of those who spend the day with me, I met then.

It was quit ironic because all those kids were now men and women and I realised we had spent our precious carefree youth together and now we were grown.

What was ironic was that we were at a memorial service of Makhuza Horace Mpanza our friend Brain Mpanza’s Dad. (May his soul rest in peace).O Skumbuzo Gap Nkosi was the Master of Ceremonies and he did a great job. Now the last thing that one would have imagined when we were young was that in the Gang that we were, O’ Skhumba would have ended up as being in charge of proceedings of a large congregation for such a giant as Mr. Mpanza and as I have said handled it well.

Now Kutloano Leballo always handled whatever had to do with important matters of the background. He was always good at the behind the scenes staff. As kids Kutloano and I would look after ice, firewood, venue etc.Khulu Ntshingila looked after the catering today and Ponti of all the members of our gang was conducting the spiritual aspects of the service since now he is in the Priesthood. Yes Ponti, the very man that in our youth, if you wanted to organise anything wild and out of the ordinary or some Booze, which we were not allowed to have by the way, you called on him.

Let me put it this way, the gang of kids that were always up to no good were a great support network for Brain and his family in his great hour of need. This is what friends are for. In fact I discovered that we were not just friends but brothers in arms.

The whole Gang chipped in, in one way or the other and there are many that I did not mention or see since as I was not at the centre of proceedings this time around. Zola, Brian’s sister had difficulty when thanking all friends that she had to say ‘you know who you all are’ so that she does not miss anybody’s name.

The one person that was clearly missing was my one and only Arlene and when Zoli Kunene came to me to ask where she was I knew she had been part of the team since our youth. She had an engagement at work that she could not break hence her absence at the memorial. She was Mr.and Mrs Mpanza’s favourite and she would spent a lot of time with them in the house at a time when one never introduced your girl to you folks out of respect. They made her feel welcome and her Afrikaans heritage was no issue.Thami Lefakane and Dwight kept remembering small things that Arlene and I used to do in the then Apartheid South Africa and we were not aware we were breaking moulds and pioneering anything since ours was just love at its best.

Frank Sinatra’s ‘My Way’ was the theme song  for the memorial and I quickly gathered that it was Horace Mpanza’ s favourite song. It was in fact very fitting in that he was a Hip elderly man.In Fact Dwight and I just realised that whenever we went to visit Brian. Individually we would spent more time with Horace than with our friend, Brain. He would always be fidgeting with with some electronic equipment that did not wish to come right, so of the six hours you spend at the Mpanzas five and a half would be with Horace.

It is only today that I realised that all of us as Brains friends were just drinking the wisdom that was in his oldman.What a Communicator.

A member of the family from the Free State spoke in Crisp descriptive Zulu and gave us an inside into Horace Makhuza Mpanza that we never knew. That Horace’s father had come from a Mission school where he became a teacher. Since he was born in 1931 ,his grandfather dated around 1800 when missionary settlers first came into contact with us Natives of this Continent and descendants of the original Homo Sapiens.

This he did not say, I just worked it out by logical Arithmetic. Suddenly, a whole new Universe opened right in front of me and everything began to make sense.

Why is South Africa such a great country?

Well, we are living in the Cradle of Humankind, we are direct descendants of original man and if you believe in genetic memory we carry the original gene that is why we had a Bloodless Revolution in 1994 to the envy of all Mankind!

If on the other hand you believe in the bible as I do .The Garden of Eden was somewhere around here.I then re-read Genesis 2:7 (And the Lord God formed man of dust…….living soul).Now this is where things started getting interesting since in Genesis 2:11(The name……where there is Gold).Now maybe I did not sleep well the previous night but Gold is abundant in South Africa……….Or is this just a coincidence.

Now if you read all that I have said backwards, all still make sense Vis South Africa, Gold, Genesis, and Cradle of Humankind.

Now I always double check myself whenever I discover something. I even double check if I was not drinking or someone was not smoking Ganja nearby and I inhaled by mistake?

So this little theory of mine began to explain a lot to me.In conversation with Menzi Kunene at the memorial we touched on why is it that South Africans excel on every world body that they are part off. Sam Ramsammy at the Olympics .Danny Jordan at FIFA.Abbey Chikane and I on the Kimberley Process a South African iniciative.In fact we agreed that the was nothing stopping us from hosting all other tournaments after the FIFA World Cup but stupid Jacob Zuma.His actions of costing our country and our movement the moral high ground which it enjoyed since Nelson Mandela. (My words not Menzis’ in case someone wants to attack, I take the responsibility).

Now let be put everything in context so that everything is clear.

At the morning of the memorial, our finance minister Pravin Gordhan had just refused to meet with the Hawks Special Investigating Unit on some trumped up charge. This charge was brought about by some General Ntsebeza I think, who a court of law found twice to be untruthful. So the country was on a knife edge fearing a repeat of December 9/12 of year 2015.This is when  our famous President fired a competent finance minister Nene and whipped of over $1bn of value from our national assets and send the rand/dollar exchange to R20.00/$1.

So it was a tense day for all practical perposses.I had just seen a You-tube of Sipho Pityana ‘Zemkile inkomo magwala idini’ as he pays tribute to the late Rev.Stofile.This cry was first heard when the settlers arrived in 1652 and the years that followed. But today it was directed at the floundering African National Congress who were silent as a grave when they knew that all was falling around them and the so-called leaders did nothing.

For the first time in a long time when I was watching Sipho Pityana. I was filled with Hope once again that South Africa does have Men and Women of Quality. To take the Beloved Country forward. And that the lessons of Horace and our forefathers did not fall on deaf ears. That in South Africa cometh the time, Cometh the MAN or WOMEN.

So I want to finally assure everybody, that in every century. God gives the world, Two great statesmen and I concede that in the last century, Nelson Mandela was both these statesmen.

 In this century the almighty is going to give us another two, but one of them is going to be a women. But both are going to come from South Africa and one I am going to see in my lifetime!

{This article is a tribute to H.M. Mpanza and all the brotherhood and sisterhood I grew up with Peter Temane,Brain,Skhumbuzo,Thami,Khulu,Dwight,Kutlwano,Moss,Zoli,Zanosi,Ponti,Pops,Zola,Lwazi,Morakane,Arlene,Zandi,Motshabi,Lami-ki and

All the gang members who stood to support each other in Good and Bad times. May our children grow to learn the value of a TEAM.

Even though we may not always be together, we will never be Apart}

Tank Bulbulia

Of all the master business classes that I ever had. And I have had many. None of them stick in my head than that came out of Tank Bulbulia.

Do not get me wrong this in no way diminish what I learned from Philemon Makgetha; Makana Tshabalala; Peter Springit; Chris Ball; Morita Sun of Sony and many others.

I went to high school with Tank’s daughter Fatima and his late son Simod (May his soul rest in peace).

Tank was a great pioneer of Fitas, a place near Braamfontein railway Station in an area we call Fordsburg today. This is an area where Sharif Khan ruled and the late Scara Sono (Jomo Sono’s father) held court. No self-respecting criminal dare do anything silly without paying homage to these gentlemen.

When the Oriental Plaza was established, the Nationalists Party had to consult with Tank and his committee before anything can happen. This was to enforce the Group Areas Act. What is funny is that most of the houses in Fitas were demolished but not Tank’s house and the Mosque two blocks away. Word has it that the bull dozers ran out of diesel and they would return later to finish the job, from 1956 till today.

Please allow me to digress and tell you a little bit about Sharif Khan. A tall man who resembles a village’s Black Smith but always in a double breasted suit and a slim tie.Mr.Kharn never worked for anybody or owned a store or anything but always well dressed and loaded with cash. “Die was a Outie” self-made a ‘Gosha’……..One of the best compliments I was ever paid was that I was a ‘Gumsha’.Knowing the origin of this descriptive term made me very proud to wear this label. Let me let you inn on a little “township” secret. A ‘Gumsha’ is an independent person who makes his way in this world. Never bowing to the status quo.He makes his own rules but only obeys the Laws of God. Many man made laws do not apply to him. Very often he is the go to guy and will solve most problems. He is the Godfather without a gun..!

Anyway, I was still telling you about Tank. One afternoon, after I had watched my weekly Chinese 12:30 show at Starlight Cinema in President street, I went past the Oriental Plaza to  visit Mrs Bulbulia,Tank’s wife ,whom I had grown fond of. Who by the way made the best samoosas’ in town. Now, there is nothing like Mrs.Bulbulia’s samoosas’ and a Fanta Orange or Grape after watching a violent Chinese movie with sub-titles Nothing.

That weekend The Bulbulias were running ‘Buy One-Get One Free’ on Stasky jeans for R16.99.

This is at the time when Staskey jeans cost you R20-00 each anywhere in Johannesburg, Germiston or Pretoria……So after my samosa feast, I try a pair on and I was politely told that I should take the pair home for free.

My head was now spinning, not only do they sell Staskey for a bargain I had to take one home free.

As a good Cristian –boy I thanked the Bulbulias multi-fold and headed home.

One thing kept bugging me as to how they did it? As a student of business and business structures and formulas, I had to know how they got the ‘Buy one-Get one Free’ right.

I later returned and bought stock for resale at a discounted Mac-Price which went lower and lower every week where for R20 I got four pairs. I would them resell them for R9.99 each making myself a cool 100% return for my trouble. When “Bang Bang “jeans hit town I was a jean king in the township and also took lay-byes. 5liters of petrol was just under one pound so life was good.

So as years went by I plugged enough courage to as Tank how he did the trick? Oh he said….I have a great relationship with the manufacture and I buy ….All His Rejects for R1…….a pair!

He is very grateful to me that I clean up all his stock.

The penny dropped so loud in my head it was as if I was inside the Big Ben Towers of London.

The second trick that Tank tough me had to do with biscuits .This is where he resold what he bought for the buyer to resell to his other customers.

I will not bore you with the details of this one so far as to say: What a Master Class from Tank!

(This piece is dedicated to the Bulbulias whose hospitality and love never changed till now.To all my friends in Fordsburg Haniff;Dawood and all the Ouens I say sweet by you.May the Almighty bless you and your children for all you did for me!)