Former inmate motivates youngsters to walk the straight and narrow

Sifiso Ndlovu (46), a former convict who is now a motivational speaker, advised young people to avoid prison at all costs “because it is the most dangerous place and only a few people survive here.”

Ndlovu, who hails from Vosloorus, said he became a motivational speaker after he saw how young people partook in unlawful activities that would affect their lives forever.

“When I see young people throwing away their futures, it troubles me because I know it will only lead them to prison.

“Prison is not a good place to be. Nothing is nice about being in prison, no matter what you might see on TV or what people say. It can turn you into someone you never thought you would be,” explained Ndlovu.

He said sleeping next to a dead body in prison is nothing out of the ordinary.

“I have also had a first-hand account of substance abuse through the drug rehabilitation course offered in prison. That is where I saw what drugs can do to a person.

“Many kids use drugs today, and this distresses me. It is something I hope to change with my motivational speaking.

“In my talks, I tackle gender-based violence, crime and substance abuse because I know those are the things that affect communities.”

Ndlovu stated if he changed only one person’s life every day, he would have achieved his goal.

“When in prison, I had deep self-introspection and was more determined to change my life. When I was paroled after serving eight years of my 10-year sentence in the Johannesburg Correctional Services, popularly known as Sun City Jail, I put my thoughts into practice.

“I would like to thank God for bringing me home alive and without any sicknesses because that doesn’t normally happen if you go to prison. It’s also sad that I wasted eight years of my life in prison. Before going to prison, I had a good life, but now I’m struggling to get it back.

“I lost three close family members while I was in prison – my mom, sister and grandmother – and I’m struggling to come to terms with the fact that I was not there when my mother was sick.

“The prison gates locked behind me when I was 36, in 2013, for fraud. I regret my involvement in the situation that got me arrested for fraud.”

Ndlovu was arrested in 2013 for accepting a bribe from a pastor in Vosloorus who wanted to secure land for his church with Ndlovu’s help as a businessman.

He said he believes God changes people, and he is proof of that.

“I wish I’d made different choices and never had to go through what I went through in life. What kept me going in prison is education. I studied economics through Unisa and was a regular churchgoer.

“It’s definitely hard for me to find employment, but I can still survive because I was an entrepreneur before I went to prison, so I’m working toward becoming a businessman again,” he concluded.

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