Latest news with #Sooliman
IOL News
a day ago
- IOL News
Gift of the Givers threatened by ‘water mafia' while providing aid to Eastern Cape flood victims
Dr Imtiaz Sooliman, humanitarian and founder of Gift of the Givers, is undeterred by the threats by they received from the "water mafia" while providing aid-relief to the Eastern Cape's flood victims. Image: Armand Hough/ Independent Newspapers IT SEEMS that "water mafia's" greed knows no bounds, not even the devastating floods that claimed the lives of 90 people in the Eastern Cape can melt their hearts. This after humanitarian aid organisation Gift of the Givers' volunteers were intimidated while delivering essential water supplies to the affected residents of Mthatha. In the wake of the intimidation the organisation's drivers had endured, Dr Imtiaz Sooliman, the founder and chairman of Gift of the Givers, fired back at the perpetrators saying that they were "not afraid", and they would continue to serve the needs of community, with the backing of the government and communities. Sooliman detailed the alarming encounters faced by their drivers who were met with threats while transporting much-needed water. 'Given the hardships and difficulties of the people and the fact that 90 people have passed on, the behaviour of the water mafia is totally disgusting,' he declared. Video Player is loading. Play Video Play Unmute Current Time 0:00 / Duration -:- Loaded : 0% Stream Type LIVE Seek to live, currently behind live LIVE Remaining Time - 0:00 This is a modal window. Beginning of dialog window. Escape will cancel and close the window. Text Color White Black Red Green Blue Yellow Magenta Cyan Transparency Opaque Semi-Transparent Background Color Black White Red Green Blue Yellow Magenta Cyan Transparency Opaque Semi-Transparent Transparent Window Color Black White Red Green Blue Yellow Magenta Cyan Transparency Transparent Semi-Transparent Opaque Font Size 50% 75% 100% 125% 150% 175% 200% 300% 400% Text Edge Style None Raised Depressed Uniform Dropshadow Font Family Proportional Sans-Serif Monospace Sans-Serif Proportional Serif Monospace Serif Casual Script Small Caps Reset restore all settings to the default values Done Close Modal Dialog End of dialog window. Advertisement Next Stay Close ✕ Ad Loading Gift of the Givers teams are now being escorted by police and security officials when delivering water to residents in Mthatha. Image: Gift of the Givers Dr Sooliman appreciates the swift action taken by the South African Police Service (SAPS), which provided a convoy escort—flanked by police vehicles both in front of and behind the charity's water tankers—to ensure safe passage for their operations. 'The situation has completely calmed down. However, we are calling on the community of Mthatha to help us locate a black Toyota Fortuner from which the threat was made; this person needs to be arrested,' he urged. In a bold statement, Sooliman addressed the perpetrators directly, declaring, 'This is a message to all water mafia: we will take you on wherever you are. Gift of the Givers is not afraid of anyone. We have the support of the government, SAPS, SANDF, and above all, we have the support of the communities and the municipalities.' He expressed resolve against those who exploit others' suffering and insisted that 'profiteering from the hardships of people has to stop.' The situation drew the attention of Police Minister Senzo Mchunu, who reacted strongly to the intimidation tactics targeted at Gift of the Givers. He stated, 'It is alleged that members of a so-called 'water mafia' reportedly linked to service providers contracted by the OR Tambo District Municipality threatened Gift of the Givers staff as they distributed clean drinking water to residents impacted by the recent floods.' During a recent visit to Mthatha, Mchunu expressed gratitude to the police for their efforts during the crisis and firmly condemned any attempts to obstruct humanitarian work. 'The police will not tolerate any attempt to intimidate or obstruct those who are working tirelessly to save lives and bring relief to our people,' he asserted. Mchunu noted that any attack on Gift of the Givers was not merely an attack on an organisation but on the very values of Ubuntu that underpin South African society. Further emphasising the commitment to public safety, the Minister assured that law enforcement would act decisively against these threats and also revealed disturbing reports of theft targeting the homes of flood victims. 'We have also been made aware of individuals who go to the homes of those who lost their lives due to these floods, with a view to committing acts of theft,' he warned. Police forces are deployed to ensure the safety of these properties and safeguard the dignity of the deceased and their families. Dr Sooliman welcomed the backing from the Minister and reiterated the significant need for supportive community action to curb such heinous behaviour. DAILY NEWS
IOL News
2 days ago
- IOL News
Gift of the Givers faces intimidation from 'water mafia' during flood relief efforts
Gift of the Givers teams are now being escorted to deliver water to residents in Mthatha. Image: Gift of the Givers Humanitarian aid organisation, Gift of the Givers, which has been pivotal in assisting those affected by the floods in the Eastern Cape, are being intimidated by 'water mafia'. Speaking to IOL, Dr Imtiaz Sooliman, founder and chairman of Gift of the Givers, said members of the 'water mafia' have been trying to intimidate its drivers while delivering life-saving water to the people of Mthatha who have been severely affected by the recent floods. 'Given the hardships and difficulties of the people and the fact that 90 people have passed on, the behaviour of the water mafia is totally disgusting. We appreciate the fact that the SAPS acted immediately by sending out a convoy (vehicle in front and behind) our water tankers. The situation has completely calmed down. However, we are calling on the community of Mthatha to help us locate a black [Toyota] Fortuner. It is the Fortuner from which the threat was made; this person needs to be arrested,' Dr Sooliman said. He also issued a stern warning for the 'water mafia'. Humanitarian and founder of Gift of the Givers, Dr Imtiaz Sooliman. Image: Armand Hough/ Independent Newspapers Video Player is loading. Play Video Play Unmute Current Time 0:00 / Duration -:- Loaded : 0% Stream Type LIVE Seek to live, currently behind live LIVE Remaining Time - 0:00 This is a modal window. Beginning of dialog window. Escape will cancel and close the window. Text Color White Black Red Green Blue Yellow Magenta Cyan Transparency Opaque Semi-Transparent Background Color Black White Red Green Blue Yellow Magenta Cyan Transparency Opaque Semi-Transparent Transparent Window Color Black White Red Green Blue Yellow Magenta Cyan Transparency Transparent Semi-Transparent Opaque Font Size 50% 75% 100% 125% 150% 175% 200% 300% 400% Text Edge Style None Raised Depressed Uniform Dropshadow Font Family Proportional Sans-Serif Monospace Sans-Serif Proportional Serif Monospace Serif Casual Script Small Caps Reset restore all settings to the default values Done Close Modal Dialog End of dialog window. Advertisement Video Player is loading. Play Video Play Unmute Current Time 0:00 / Duration -:- Loaded : 0% Stream Type LIVE Seek to live, currently behind live LIVE Remaining Time - 0:00 This is a modal window. Beginning of dialog window. Escape will cancel and close the window. Text Color White Black Red Green Blue Yellow Magenta Cyan Transparency Opaque Semi-Transparent Background Color Black White Red Green Blue Yellow Magenta Cyan Transparency Opaque Semi-Transparent Transparent Window Color Black White Red Green Blue Yellow Magenta Cyan Transparency Transparent Semi-Transparent Opaque Font Size 50% 75% 100% 125% 150% 175% 200% 300% 400% Text Edge Style None Raised Depressed Uniform Dropshadow Font Family Proportional Sans-Serif Monospace Sans-Serif Proportional Serif Monospace Serif Casual Script Small Caps Reset restore all settings to the default values Done Close Modal Dialog End of dialog window. Next Stay Close ✕ 'This is a message to all water mafia: we will take you on wherever you are. Gift of the Givers is not afraid of anyone. We have the support of the government, SAPS, SANDF, and above all, we have the support of the communities and the municipalities. When it comes to assisting people in dire need, as is the case in Mthatha in the Eastern Cape, this kind of heinous behaviour has to stop. Profiteering from the hardships of people has to stop. We hope we are provided support in all areas where the water mafia is capitalising,' he said. Police Minister, Senzo Mchunu, also strongly condemns the threats and intimidation directed at Gift of the Givers. 'It is alleged that members of a so-called 'water mafia' reportedly linked to service providers contracted by the OR Tambo District Municipality, threatened Gift of the Givers staff as they distributed clean drinking water to residents impacted by the recent floods,' Mchunu said. Mchunu was in Mthatha at the weekend to engage with and thank members of the SAPS for their efforts during the floods, which have, to date, claimed 90 lives and displaced hundreds more. 'The police will not tolerate any attempt to intimidate or obstruct those who are working tirelessly to save lives and bring relief to our people. Gift of the Givers has consistently been a source of hope and dignity to South Africans in their hour of need. Any attack on them is an attack on the very principle of Ubuntu. No individual or group will be allowed to profiteer off disaster or compromise the safety and well-being of our people. Law enforcement will act decisively,' Mchunu said. He further stated the SAPS will ensure the safety of all humanitarian workers in the area and hold those responsible fully accountable under the law. 'We have also been made aware of individuals who go to the homes of those who lost their lives due to these floods, with a view to committing acts of theft from these homes. Police have been deployed to ensure the safety of the property of the deceased,' Mchunu added. Dr Sooliman welcomed the backing by the minister. IOL
Daily Maverick
14-05-2025
- General
- Daily Maverick
From ruins to resilience: Gazan medical students triumph against adversity in South Africa
Twenty-seven students from Gaza will be heading back home after arriving in 2024 to complete their practicals for medical studies at UCT and Wits university following the destruction of their medical schools during the Gaza war. Twenty-seven final-year medical students from Al-Azhar University and Islamic University in Gaza were displaced from their universities after they were destroyed by Israeli missiles. But the students turned tragedy to triumph and have managed to complete their studies through the University of Cape Town (UCT, 25) and University of the Witswatersand (Wits, 2). The students arrived in South Africa in 2024 to complete their medical studies in order to graduate. Most of the students managed to escape to Egypt through the Rafa border to get to South Africa. Their faculty deans had made arrangements with universities in South Africa to help the students complete their studies. On 3 May 2025, Gift of the Givers, a non-profit organisation, bade farewell to the students at UCT after a dinner was held to celebrate their milestone after facing hardship and defying the odds by completing their studies despite being away from their families in Gaza for months. Gift of the Givers co-founder Zohra Sooliman told Daily Maverick that many doctors had been killed and hospitals were being targeted during the war in Gaza, and that these students would be the future when the war ended. She said the organisation approached donors and sponsors to fund the students, who then ended up staying at a nearby accommodation to the UCT campus and hospital. However, Sooliman says they faced a big challenge. 'The practical part they were going to do, they did that for all the hospitals in Cape Town and the clinics. But the theory part for the final year, they were still doing online with their home university, and that was a challenge for them. For example, in theory they'd probably be doing something like surgery, but in the hospitals in Cape Town they were probably doing their obstetrics and gynaecology,' said Sooliman. 'When they came here, it was a whole adjustment. We speak 11 languages in our country. We are a rainbow nation made up of so many different things such as race groups, ethnicity, culture. We are so different, and for them coming from a country where there's a homogeneous society, it was new,' she said. Missing families in Gaza Sooliman said that it was not easy for the students because they felt guilty for leaving their families behind while they were safe studying in South Africa. 'At the back of their minds was a consistent worry about the safety of their families, whether they were being fed, out there in the cold… They suffered from a guilt complex, where they were feeling guilty that they were fine but their families were not,' said Sooliman. However, despite the difficulties faced by the students, Sooliman said they showed determination and courage to complete their studies in a foreign country. At their celebration and farewell day, the students wore graduation gowns and hoods sporting Palestinian colours; on the scrolls was an oath that the students took that was presented by the Islamic Medical Association of South Africa. 'So for me it was not just about achieving a degree academically. It was much more than that. For me it was a show of determination, perseverance, patience, strength, courage and resilience. Despite everything they pushed through, and that's why I am so proud of them,' said Sooliman. The students have few theory exams left, but they have completed their practicals. According to Sooliman, some have left the country already and a few will depart for Gaza in the coming days. DM
