UWC 360 Issue 5-Final 7/2/13 10:54 AM Page 2 C
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UWC capped 3 136 students, including 37 doctoral and 238 master's graduates during the past graduation season.
A family of pharmacists
Editorial Welcome to the fifth edition of Three-Sixt-e, the second issue for 2013. We have another jam-packed edition in store for you. UWC continues to enhance the intellectual, social and economic life of our country. This edition proudly acknowledges the development of South Africa's first hydrogen fuel cell golf cart by UWC’s HySA Systems Integration & Technology Validation Competence Centre and Melex Electrovehicles.
Ahmed Halday and three of his children studied pharmacy at UWC.
After Ahmed Halday obtained his pharmacy degree at UWC in 1979 (he graduated with a BSc in 1976) he went on to manage Medi-Kem, a successful and popular pharmacy. Three of his children - Shanaaz, Abdul Hamid and Miriam - followed suit and also studied pharmacy at UWC. All work in the family business with their mother, who is described as a pharmacist without a degree. Mrs Halday has been the backbone of the business for thirty years, dealing with all administrative matters. Miriam, who graduated at UWC in 2003, says her father inculcated a culture of assisting other people in them. Also, her father was often praised and was wellrespected in his community. The exemplary figure Ahmed presented inspired his children to follow his career path. Despite lucrative opportunities to work in the UK and in the USA, Ahmed has served the Sunnyside area of Athlone, where he grew up, professionally since 1982. During apartheid, his pharmacy was used to hide students during protests, and was the first
stop for Govan Mbeki, father of former President Thabo Mbeki, after he was released from prison. At UWC he was popular too, and names the late Professor Jakes Gerwel, who was the leader of the Student Representative Council, among his role models. His popularity put his children on the spot. “Most lecturers knew him and we were constantly hassled and picked on a lot,” Abdul Hamid recalls. Ahmed Halday notes that the road to success was not easy. His lecturers in his undergraduate years at UWC were “Broederbonders” who were architects of apartheid. He remembers one lecturer coming to class with a gun in his hand, and another telling students to open windows, even in winter, 'because they stink'. “He would say 'you are not humans, you must still be humans'.” To prove such people wrong and to improve conditions for his family, Mr Halday worked at night and studied during the day until he could open his pharmacy business.
The Campus Lifestyle Store Want to show you're Proudly UWC? We stock a wide range of UWC Alumni memorabilia. Contact the Campus Lifestyle Store for details, at campuslifestyle@uwc.ac.za or telephone +27 21 959 9341/2.
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The spotlight falls on the School of Pharmacy, with the newsletter featuring several alumni who have established successful careers in the sector, as well as alumni from other departments and faculties. The theme in the latest instalment of the ‘Lead from where you are’ discussion series, which took place earlier in May, also focused on Pharmacy with the highly enlightening discussion entitled Pharmacists Adapting to Change. We also catch up with UWC alumnus Jerry Laka, assistant coach to the national women’s football team Banyana Banyana, who shares with us his experiences of coaching UWC football. The campus was graced with a performance by local performing artist and UWC alumnus, Chad Saaiman, at the finale of the Alumni T-shirt Competition which was hosted by the Alumni Relations Office in March. The competition inspired students to create a T-shirt design showcasing the 'proudly Udubs' experience. The winning designs will be featured on the Alumni Winter and Summer range T-shirts. Well done to second-year biotechnology student Khuboni Mdlambuzi for producing the winning design. Thank you so much for your terrific contribution. Patricia Lawrence Pro Vice-Chancellor Department for Institutional Advancement