‘Neheng Mofoka
The concerned Koalabata youth have turned to football to tackle the social ills within their community.
Tired of the endless incidents of crime in the area, a group of youth last weekend hosted a soccer tournament at Setsokotsane Village Ground.
The tournament started last Saturday, with a fun walk from Ha-TÅ¡osane to Sekamaneng, and then back to the starting point.
The fun walk was followed by the football tournament, where there were some sponsors with football kits, medals, and trophies for the winners.
Clothes and sanitary towels were also donated to needy people, with medical professionals educating the youth about hygiene and wellness.
The tournament coordinator, Thejane Bereng, said they want to get to a point where they can create a youth empowerment organisation to support youth in the area.
“To achieve this, we planned to host a tournament that brings together all the youth of Koalabata in one place so that we can have the same vision of fighting the challenges we face,†he said.
He said it is about time they changed Koalabata’s generational curse for the batter because it is always in the news for the wrong reasons.
China Nqosa, a villager and youth coach, said his ambition is to remove children from the streets of Koalabata village and instill a love for sports in them to counter crime in the area.
“I have been coaching for 25 years, and I want to help these children so that gangsterism, violent crimes, and substance abuse come to an end in the area,” said Nqosa.
“As Kaolabata residents, we are therefore very happy about this tournament, as it is going to reduce the crime rate in our community.
Julius Ranthimo, another Koalabata resident, said the tournament was the best thing to have happened to the community.
“We look forward to this kind of event in our area. Even on Christmas holidays, there should be something for the community,†Ranthimo said.