A former homeless man who spent at least three years sleeping under a tree on Rivonia Road in Johannesburg north on Thursday came full circle when he walked the stage of the University of Johannesburg (UJ) as a master’s graduate in history.
In a statement, UJ described Msawenkosi Gibson Nzimande’s achievement as “a monumental milestone”.
The former waste picker had spent his years of destitution clutching onto four things: a bucket, a small piece of soap, his honours degree certificate and master’s proposal.
After news of his plight went viral, donations were raised to get him enrolled for the master’s programme, where he wrote his paper on the struggles of four women from Ekurhuleni who battled with nyaope addiction.
“His first-hand experience as a waste reclaimer provided him with unique insights into the relationship between gender and substance use among the youth, particularly young women. His work highlights an often-neglected perspective, as most studies in this field focus primarily on men,” the university said.
TimesLIVE Premium has seen his paper, titled “Life Histories of Women Using Nyaope in a South African Township: Four Biographies”, where in one part he tells the story of 32-year-old nyaope addict Nompumelelo Sithole.
Sithole’s plight starts with her falling pregnant in school, dropping out and dealing with unemployment. She falls pregnant for a second time and this time, has compensation paid for the child and partial lobola paid for her — all the while she is dabbling in nyaope.
“A friend told her boyfriend that Nompumelelo was smoking nyaope and that is when they broke up. At the time, Nompumelelo was still new to using drugs and she only smoked about once every three days,” the paper says.
When he broke up with her, she lost all hope and decided to smoke more. Her journey into drugs taught her that young women assume roles and duties that are centred around the drug space.
From a homeless person to a graduate of a prestigious university such as UJ. I am pleased that I get to live in this moment. It shows that the effort I put in, trying to make ends meet, was all worth it
— Gibson Nzimande
“Young men using nyaope assume tasks that promote a traditional masculine identity, often closer to the source of the nyaope chain: selling nyaope, work at taxi ranks, odd jobs at street corners, scrap collection.
“With nyaope, a substance that men control, it is different from when women brewed and sold alcohol as an urban occupation, accepted within the urban environment.”
Sithole got the shock of her life when she later met the father of her second child in the nyaope circle. He was not only addicted but now a “snyman” (seller and leader). They then got back together and she was happy to have a consistent supply of the drug.
The research found that living with the snyman is considered by young women living in this environment to be good fortune: “It is viewed as a way to get more of what you want, including privileged access to the drug without needing to have sex with different men. This is a form of security, even though exchanging sexual favours to obtain nyaope and other things is not viewed as abnormal in the nyaope world.”
When she moved in with him, she was exposed to different and more dangerous ways of taking the drug, the research revealed.
“As I reflect on my journey, I couldn’t be more satisfied with the direction this is taking,” said Nzimande, who is now on a journey to obtain his PhD.
“From a homeless person to a graduate of a prestigious university such as UJ. I am pleased that I get to live in this moment. It shows that the effort I put in, trying to make ends meet, was all worth it. I have finally finished this degree.
“I can now see the direction of my life and the realisation of a childhood dream, and I look forward to pursuing my studies further at UJ.”
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