Voters at Ohlange High School pay homage to Mandela, say they're now fighting for economic freedom
All these years on, they say the sacrifices Mandela and his peers made for their freedom have not been forgotten.
Ohlange High School in Inanda, north of Durban, where Nelson Mandela voted there for the first time in 1994. Picture: Xanderleigh Dookey/ Eyewitness News
DURBAN - As the sun begins to set on South Africa’s seventh democratic elections, voters at Ohlange High School in Inanda, north of Durban, have paid homage to the country’s very first democratically elected president, Nelson Mandela, who himself voted there for the first time in 1994.
All these years on, they say the sacrifices Mandela and his peers made for their freedom have not been forgotten.
It’s been a long day and it’s now starting to get dark and the temperature to drop but that’s not deterring the voters.
Eyewitness News heard that some 800 of the more than 1,600 registered voters came out on Wednesday, with the majority making their way towards the end of the day.
And the significance of this incredibly historic site is not lost on them.
Eyewitness News spoke to 23-year-old Sbongakonke Biyela after he cast his ballot on Wednesday afternoon, and this is what he had to say.
"We are very grateful to all those comrades that have fight for our freedom a long time ago. They fought for political freedom, now we are fighting for economic freedom."