The Emalahleni Men of Destiny need land for farming and agriculture.

Pastor Ignatius Mahlangu, founder of the organisation who pinned the letter to WITBANK NEWS, expressed that this resolution was taken during the men’s conference on Saturday, September 14.

“This is the only way to fight against poverty. The conference’s theme was ‘Roles and responsibilities of homes and in the community’. The most important question raised was, if men are providers, how can they provide when they don’t have jobs?” Mahlangu questioned.

The pastor detailed that unemployment is a serious crisis affecting millions of families in South Africa.

“It is during this crisis that we as men find ourselves feeling useless and unable to provide for our children, as we fail to meet their needs as fathers. Bear in mind that this generation is expensive and faces strong competition from their peers,” Mahlangu added

He assured that it is an undeniable fact that unemployment affects their dignity and leads to father figures having no authority over their families.

“In our communities, there are children who go to school on an empty stomach, without proper school uniforms, and such children suffer dire living conditions. It’s painful to know that those children see their peers carry lunch boxes, full, ironed, new, and clean school uniforms,” he said.

According to the founder, social ills are a great concern for Men of Destiny as many children in township communities’ parents have died through HIV, Covid-19, and other chronic illnesses.

“Those children need a village because raising a child needs a village. In 2016, we launched a slogan called ‘Your child is my child’ aimed to encourage and promote the spirit of caring for children in need. Some of the children have never experienced the love of their fathers and there is no dustbin for a child, every child irrespective of family background deserves the best life education,” he cried.

Mahlangu reckoned that through farming and agriculture, the Men of Destiny can do more to alleviate poverty and social ills in townships.

“We want to create real families for our children, and we want them to benefit from the fruits of our labour and democracy, as we suffered on their behalf. We want to leave this earth with a legacy and blessings for our children and grandchildren, according to Proverbs 20,” he wished.

He further advocated for the youth to take a lead in issues of democracy constructively.

“They must become responsible for the next generation, support and protect them. We, therefore, request the government under the Department of Rural Affairs under Emalahleni Local Municipality and companies with means to assist us, please come forth”.

He ended by assuring that the land for farming would enable the foundation to demonstrate their ability as Men of Destiny, men who are already active in agriculture to eradicate poverty in township communities.

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