Last updated on 3 August 2022
Kaizer Chiefs Football Club founder and chairman Kaizer Motaung was conferred an honorary doctorate degree in social sciences by the University of Cape Town on Friday. This is an edited version of his acceptance speech.
“When I received the invitation from the Vice-Chancellor, I found this indeed an honour, particularly as it comes when the University of Cape Town is ranked top in Africa by the Quacquarelli Symonds World Universities Rankings in 2022, released in June 2022.
The university is currently ranked number one in Africa on all five major university rankings – the QS Rankings, Times Higher Education Rankings, Shanghai Ranking Academic Ranking of World Universities, Center for World Universities Rankings, and the US News and World Report Rankings. And I think this is remarkable and really deserves a round of applause.
I wish to express my gratitude to the university and Professor Mamokgethi Phakeng for this invitation and honour. I am glad to know Professor, you were recently elected Chair of the International Alliance of Research Universities (IARU) in May 2022, taking over from Professor J Toope, the Vice-Chancellor of the University of Cambridge. All the best in your two-year term from 2023 to 2025. This well-deserved accolade is distinguished as it will be for the first time in the history of the IARU the organisation will be led by an African.
To put the cherry on top, Professor Phakeng just recently in June 2022 received an honorary doctorate from the University of Ottawa. She was among the nine distinguished individuals who received honorary doctorates for the substantial contribution to their profession, to science and also to society at large. It is a second honorary doctorate bestowed on Professor Phakeng by an international university in a period of three years following her being recognised by the UK’s Bristol University in July 2019. Well done, congratulations are in order Professor Phakeng.
I have my little story to tell and share with the house here today. Just a little story. Just so you are all aware that I have not accepted invitations from other institutions to be honoured. I did not disagree nor refuse to be honoured easily. I did so as I felt I had not scratched the surface yet. I believe there’s so much work outstanding to be done in our country. South Africa is beset with so many challenges and I thought accepting and honour would not be justified at that stage.
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However, I stand here very proud and pleased to accept this honour from this institution. Growing up in Soweto, Orlando East never did I imagine I will be standing here today. I started professional soccer at the age of 16 for Orlando Pirates Football Club, and ironically Pirates are archrivals today of Kaizer Chiefs that we formed in 1977, 7th of January to be exact.
The first of my story to you is that whenever given an opportunity, do your best because you will never know who will be watching you. More so, you will never know when your moment will be. I had the privilege to ply my trade abroad as in 1968, luck was on my side while in Zambia, to be spotted by the Atlanta Chiefs founder and owner Dick Cecil and former West Ham United player Phil Woosnam, who was manager of Atlanta Chiefs at the time. The Atlanta Chiefs franchise in the then recently formed North American Soccer League. I was recruited while on team trials in Zambia. That will go down in history as a turning point in my contribution to society.
I also want to share with you a lesson of life. There will always be humps in the process to reach your destination. When I arrived in Atlanta, I struggled to come to terms with the weather and overcoming injury. I played as a substitute in two friendly games against Manchester City, who had just been crowned the English League champions, and scored two goals in the first game we won. I went on to score the winning goal in the second match two weeks later in the same tour. In the same season, I was able to score 16 goals in 15 matches. I became the top scorer in the league that season. As a result of this achievement, I was voted Rookie of the Year and gained a place in the North American Soccer League All Star team. So if injury and weather conditions dictated I would not be standing before you today.
Today I look back and say to myself, it was painful but worth it. To the graduates, what is key for me is in what Dr Martin Luther King Jr titled the Street Sweeper when he said: “If a man is called to be a street sweeper, he should sweep the streets even as Michelangelo painted, or Beethoven composed music, or Shakespeare wrote poetry. He should sweep the streets so well that all the hosts of heaven and earth will pause to say ‘here lived a great street sweeper who did his job well’”. You must excel in whatever you do and decide to do in life.
Another story to share is about Kaizer Chiefs. This story is about faith and carrying on with the journey under difficult circumstances. This is a story of a purpose-driven life. Living a purpose-driven life takes perseverance and determination. It takes making the decision to be kinder and more considerate than you were the day before. It takes admitting when you are wrong, and then taking steps to make things better.
We formed Kaizer Chiefs deep in the advent of apartheid in 1970 in the dusty streets of Phefeni in Soweto. We used our family home as a clubhouse, thanks to my parents who allowed this and provided hospitality to the team, including the traveling supporters who would come in unannounced from time to time. Despite any setbacks and opposition, we proceeded and succeeded to assemble a team that has become a force to be reckoned with.
Today, I look back and I’m thankful to many men and women, past and present, who believed in the journey of forming this colossal brand Kaizer Chiefs. Within a short space of time Kaizer Chiefs became the most successful team in South Africa, winning more than 90 trophies and gaining millions of supporters throughout the country. And indeed, it is often jokingly stated that Kaizer Chiefs do not really play any away matches as their supporters always outnumber those of the home team.
The last of the stories I want to share with you today is to see the bigger picture in the journey. Your journey. I’m proud and privileged to have witnessed us celebrating the 50th anniversary of Kaizer Chiefs in 2020. In the process Kaizer Chiefs has contributed to the society economically and politically alike. The club has produced some of the finest talent in the history of South African football. Who will forget the late Ace Ntsoelengoe, one of the finest talents South Africa ever witnessed. There are many other legends who contributed to the making of Kaizer Chiefs.
Kaizer Chiefs and Orlando Pirates contributed to the peace efforts during the height of a political tension in KwaZulu Natal in the early 90s. Through the Kaizer Chiefs Foundation and partners we contribute to poverty alleviation initiatives. These are some of the examples of the contribution that we are making in society.
My message to the graduates today is that the world, not only South Africa, is waiting for you. There are many challenges facing the world today. Franz Fanon said: “Each generation must out of relative obscurity, discover its mission, fulfill it or betray it.” The world is an oyster for you. Go out there and make a difference in your communities. Become part of the solutions and not a problem in the society. I wish to take this opportunity to congratulate fellow graduates for attaining your qualifications. I urge you to go out there, become good citizens. Whatever your dream leads you and wherever your dream leads you.
I think it is appropriate for me at this point in time to also thank the EFF for their messages since two years ago going for this award I’m bestowed upon today. So I wish to take this opportunity to thank the University of Cape Town, your parents and guardians for the sacrifices undertaken to support your education.
Finally, ladies and gentleman, I owe this honor to the members of my family, my late parents, my wife Juleka and children. But I would be amiss if I don’t recognise the entire Kaizer Chiefs family in its entirety, and corporates who have backed Kaizer Chiefs to become what it is today.
I thank you.”
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