When Shaheerah Momberg, 19, fell pregnant and dropped out of grade 10 in 2020, she felt so much shame that she just wanted to hide.
“I went into deep depression which I never thought I would come out of. I tried so hard to do right by my parents and not disappoint them, but the pregnancy brought so much shame that I never saw beyond my disappointment.”
“I just wanted to hide from everybody. I had let myself and my parents down. It was the most difficult time of my life, but I didn’t give up, and in January 2021 ... a month after I gave birth, I went back to repeat grade 10.”
As much as I was not proud of the pregnancy, that experience fuelled me to do even better.
— Shaheerah Momberg, matriculant from Manenberg Secondary School
On Friday the grade 12 pupil from Manenberg High School — one of Cape Town’s gang hotspots — came out victorious and beamed a broad smile after she received her matric results, achieving a bachelor’s pass.
Despite the deadly gang violence among prominent gangs such as Americans, Hard Livings and Clever Kids, the school, situated in the heart of Manenberg, has consistently flourished, with its matric pass rate having shot up from just 30% in 2018 to 76% last year.
Even though this year the school’s pass rate has dipped to 65%, between 2020 and 2022 Manenberg High School was recognised as the most improved public school in the Western Cape. In 2022 the school also had the most improved bachelor passes in the metro-central district.
Holding her three-year-old daughter, Israa, at the school, the shy Momberg reflected on her journey.
“I’m so excited. I never thought I’d get this far. I’m just glad I never gave up. I look back now and realise that as much as I was not proud of the pregnancy, that experience fuelled me to do even better. I’ve become more determined than before despite challenges of motherhood, including getting very little sleep.”
Writing her final exam was no easy path as she had to study and look after her daughter. Just before the final exams her daughter had a health scare and was rushed to hospital with gastric complications.
“I remember praying for my daughter’s life to be spared. I couldn’t lose her at such a crucial time, but it turned out that she had some infection and was severely constipated, so she was discharged.
“My mother gave up her job to look after her, but I’m still her mother and I had to spend time with her even during exams. Sometimes the pressure to study would be so much that all I could do was to tickle her and let my mother do the rest, but that also left me with so much guilt.”
Another pupil who overcame adversity from the Cape Flats school and got a ticket to study a degree at a university with a bachelor’s pass, is 17-year-old Mache du Toit. Throughout her schooling career Du Toit, who was raised by her single mother, had to walk through three gang territories to reach school.
“My house is next to a park that is considered a no-man’s land and is used as a battlefield by gangs. When gangs start shooting at each other they don’t care whether there are children in the park, or you are walking to or from school ... they just open fire and shoot. In some instances, children die from stray bullets,” said Du Toit.
But last year, after gang violence intensified, school principal Cameron Williams had to take extraordinary measures and started transporting Du Toit and her peers to get them safely to school.
Not only were matrics in the Cape Flats affected by the week-long minibus strike that left five people dead last August, but two weeks before the final exams, a gang war broke out in Manenberg, leaving at least six people dead over one weekend.
“It became increasingly unsafe to walk to school, especially in winter when it’s dark and wet, but the support of our teachers and Mr Williams made it all bearable,” said Du Toit.
“Receiving support gave me a drive to do better. There were certain days that I felt like giving up, but every time that thought came, I would think of all the sacrifices ... the extra mile that our principal ran to ensure that we were fed and studied in a safe environment. That made me to push myself harder. I didn’t want to let them down.”
While Momberg hopes to find a job after matriculating that will enable her to look after her child, Du Toit aspires to be a teacher and hopes to get a response from University of the Western Cape and Cape Peninsula University of Technology, where she has applied for degrees in education.
“I’ve always wanted to be a teacher since childhood. Growing up I used to call all the children in the neighbourhood and give them old books, and I would put on my granny’s high heels and act as a teacher. I’m hoping that one day, when I’m qualified, I will come back and teach in Manenberg and give back to the community that shaped me into the person that I am today.”
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