Gugu is living her - Media Privemediaprive.co.za/.../2015/02/Corporate03-Gugu-Ndima...Gugu is living her political dream A mother, daughter, public serv-ant, political youth activist,

TRAILBLAZER Writer: Samona MuruganPhotographer: Katlholo Maifadi

Gugu is living her political dream

A mother, daughter, public serv-

ant, political youth activist, stu-

dent and now author – these

are just some of the titles that defi ne

Gugu Ndima.

As the current spokesperson to the

Speaker of the Gauteng legislature, this

bubbly and strikingly eloquent young

woman is responsible for speaking on

behalf of all the provincial offi ce bear-

ers at the provincial legislature. Her pas-

sion for politics shines through as she

describes the importance of having a

legislative foundation. “The legislature

is the bedrock of our democracy, and

it ensures that the voice of the public

is thoroughly represented in holding

the Gauteng provincial government

accountable.”

Despite her busy schedule, Ndima is

also a part-time student at the Wits Busi-

ness School and has fulfi lled her dream

of writing a book. All in a Galz Life is a

fi ctional story of fi ve women from dif-

ferent backgrounds who fi nd common

ground through their life experiences.

Ndima has also written various politi-

cal and personal pieces for The Times,

Sunday Independent and the Mail &

Guardian. She was also nominated for

the Mail & Guardian’s Top 200 Young

South Africans in 2010 and again this

year. She received CEO magazine’s meri-

torious award as a leader of tomorrow

in the business and professional sector

in South Africa’s most infl uential women

in business and government category.

To sustain democracy, Ndima says,

government must cultivate a relation-

ship of accountability and responsibility

with citizens.

Born and bred in Katlehong in Ekurhu-

leni, Ndima describes herself as an ordi-

nary township girl, yet there is nothing

ordinary about her rise to the top. As the

eldest daughter to Ellinah and the late

Themba Ndima, she is also a mother to

fi ve-year-old Nhlakanipho. After skip-

ping two grades in school, she was able

to matriculate at the age of just 15 from

Fumani Comprehensive High in 1999.

As a young girl she was faced with the

task of choosing a career, however she

soon realised that the choice had al-

ready been made for her.

Going against the grain

“Growing up in a township, there is a

limited understanding of what careers

are out there. The most well-known

careers are: a doctor, an accountant or

a lawyer.”

So, accountancy it was, and she reg-

istered for fi nancial accounting at the

University of Johannesburg (UJ) in 2000.

At UJ she joined the debating society

and the South African Students Con-

gress. After two years of studying fi nan-

cial accounting, Ndima decided to drop

out, much to the dismay of her family.

“My family could not understand my

decision. They were confused and quite

upset, but it was a blessing in disguise

for me.”

She started working part-time jobs

and found herself working as an admin-

istrative assistant at Discovery Health.

Little did she know that this would be

the turning point that would catapult

her career in the right direction. After

being fi red from her job for wanting to

take leave to vote in the local elections,

Ndima wrote a letter to the CEO of Dis-

covery Health in which she raised her

concerns. “It was quite audacious that

the company did not have a patriotic

duty,” she says.

The letter was circulated to many po-

litical and youth groups and certainly

got people’s attention.

“I think it was inevitable that I would

leave the private sector. I was not happy

and I felt like I did not belong. I felt that

I was just a statistic rather than actually

contributing or making a diff erence.”

Ndima was then approached by the

Young Communist League who were,

at the time, trying to resuscitate their

media and communication unit. She

thought she would just be a writer op-

erating behind the scenes but by 2008

she had become the league’s spokes-

person.

In 2011, she joined the ANC Gauteng

communication unit to assist in the lo-

cal elections. A few months later she

joined the provincial legislature as the

spokesperson for ANC Chief Whip Brian

Hlongwa.

“From day one I realised that this is

where I was meant to be. I love the fact

that every day I am making some sort of

impact on the lives of others.”

Ndima concedes that there are sys-

tems in government that need to be

Public Sector Manager • September 201332

simplifi ed. “I think the greatest challenge

is the modus operandi of government.

I would love for our systems to be so simple

that ordinary citizens can understand exactly

what we do.”

As part of mobilising and creating an active

citizenry, Ndima says the provincial legisla-

ture has launched the Citizens Responsibility

campaign, which seeks to energise and mo-

bilise citizens and government to take more

responsibility for their conditions.

“For instance, take an issue like litter. The

public says that Johannesburg is dirty but it

is the public that is actually littering. Govern-

ment does play its role in terms of provid-

ing services like waste removal, but citizens

equally must take responsibility – the aspect

of patriotism needs to emphasised,” stresses

Ndima. To date, she admits there has been

immense improvement in the relationship

between government and the public it serves.

Ndima says her greatest strength is her per-

severance. “Even though it is tested at times,

you need to persevere and to also know when

to keep your head down, she says. One of

the most important lessons public servants

should learn is to grow a thick skin. And – it’s

not a cliché – women need to work twice as

hard to prove themselves.”

The best lesson that she learnt from her

mother is to be humble. “I wish every politi-

cian and every civil servant encompassed a

sense of humility,” she says.

Knowing who you are as a person and where

you come from is very important to enable

you to get where you want to go. As we cel-

ebrate Heritage Month Ndima says her purely

South African experiences are what make her

proudly South African. “So many people want

to leave this country every day, but when they

go they complain because they miss home so

much. I am South African because of the Zulu-

ness in me and the kasi girl in me,” she says.

Ndima says her passion for what she does

and her motivation comes from her son, who

always asks, “You work for me, right mummy?”

and he’s right, says Ndima, “I do work for him

and for the people of this country.”

*Follow Gugu Ndima on

Twitter: @msndima.

Public Sector Manager • September 2013 33