Pretrus Maluleka

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I am Pretrus Maluleka. I live in a four roomed house with three brothers and two sisters. My father passed away while I was only 3 years old. My mother is a housewife.

I started schooling at the age of eight because my mother could not carter for all of us at that time. However, she managed to get us to school by selling vegetables and fruits in some street corners in the township. During those times life was painful not to mention miserable. I had to sleep or even go to school with empty stomach. I grow up in a very difficult situation, surrounding with poverty, stress and frustrations.

It was only in 1986 when one of my brothers started working that my mother was relieved to a lesser extent. At that time I was in standard seven. He battled through thick and thin to educate us, but because he later got married things where worse again and they are still worse at the moment.

Besides all this I was actively involved in various sporting activities like soccer, athletics and debates. I was also a member of the executive committee at the SRC and SCF while I was in standard 10. In the township I was a member at the ATT/Vill youth organization, which was involved in crime campaign and clearing up campaigns and other various activities.

My elder brother is unemployed and another one is studying for diploma in municipal Administration. While my two little sisters are still at school, also finding it difficult to cope with the standard of living because of Financial problems.

I completed my matric in 1989, by obtaining aggregate C. Although I applied for bursaries I did not manage to get even one. At some stage I was promised loans, but because there was no one who will sign as my guarantor it did not succeed. They wanted someone who was earning above or at least R1500 to sign as a guarantor since my brother was earning R700 per month it was not possible for him to sign as my guarantor.

However, he managed to make salary advance from his company so that I might come to the varsity. Since he was earning R700 per month he was allowed to make an advance of R1200 not more than that, which was deducted at the end of each and every month. My mother also had to borrow some funds, I don’t know where? I suppose from her friends to make it at least R2220. When coming to the issue of accommodation, I was a squator, although my friend was exploiting me I had to beg him and I later got used to that because I had no alternative. That was how I managed to come to the university for the year 1990.

For the current year 1991, I managed to get loan from Cape Town Terminately building society who borrowed me R2250. How am I going to repay it at the moment I don’t know my mother also borrowed some funds from other people in the community and she promised to repay them as soon as she gets some funds. Still the money was not enough, at the moment I am owing the administration some funds I don’t know how I am going to settle my debt.

More-over I am staying at residence which is expensive, because I could not afford to squat like last year, because this will affect my studies. Outside accommodation was going to be worse because of transport cost. Food, rent, etc. I applied for university bursary, but I was turned down. I thought with the financial assistance which I would be offered by the University, when there is some refund, I will post it to my mother so that she must settle her debt which she made on my behalf.

I am presently faced with the problem of books and other necessary equipment. Also during the vacation I am again faced with another problem that of transport costs.

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