Carole Podetti-Ngono, founder and managing director of Valued Citizens Initiative, is encouraging South Africans to use this time at home to reflect on how they can add value by caring for their children and children from our communities as they are the ones paying the high price.
“Covid-19 has forced us into a situation where we have to work together as a nation in order to limit the potentially devastating impact of this pandemic at a time of downgrades of our country, banks and other key institutions into ‘junk status’. If we make mindful choices, we may even come out a better people.”
“Ask yourselves the question: What lesson is Covid-19 teaching me? The lesson may be to appreciate teachers inspiring your child. The lesson may be to ensure that every time I purchase a book for my child, I also purchase a book for a child from a school in Diepsloot. It may be to buy fruits and vegetables in the communities I visit to ensure that it may assist a family to feed their children. I believe every one of us can commit to a life driven by awareness of our social responsibility and caring for one another to build a better society.
“Can we set a healthy balance and make sure that families are at the centre of the development of well-rounded and healthy children emotionally and physically,” says Podetti-Ngono.
She says the social compact between government and its people is not enough. “It is time we embrace a shared set of values as South Africans and ensure that everyone matters.” concludes Podetti-Ngono.
