By Ndaba Nhuku
In 2020 when Covid 19 hit the world like a tsunami and all global businesses including educational institutions ceased functioning, some people emerged as unsung heroes. When schools closed and kids spent time sitting home one Khangelani Ncube approached me saying he had bought some soft copies of primary and secondary books he wanted to distribute to schools but didnt know how. He was concerned about students and pupils being locked indoors 24/7 with nothing to do.
It was best that they continue with their education whilst at home. I came up with an idea of forming WhatsApp groups and sharing these books. Within 2 weeks we had more than 20 full WhatsApp groups and went on to form 3 Telegram groups that had more than 20000 parents and students. These covered the entire nation and we had Administrators in all groups who periodically shared the books. With the passage of time Mr Ncube had acquired all Zimbabwean secondary and primary books we priorly didnt have in our made up rudimentary online library.
Any parent teacher or student who wanted any book could easily get them from our Admins or from other parents. All Admins have since left and only one person remains, Melody or Mai Madziwa, who we asked from the beginning to help distribute the books in our groups. She remains actively doing her task every week without complains or any renumeration. She has sacrificed her own time wi-fi and other resources to ensure she shares books in all groups at least 3 times a week. This is no small task doing so to almist 30 groups, all out of love and serving other people’s children.
Imagine from when Covid 19 started up to now some parents and teachers demand of her service and she offers this without a thank you. All because she wants no child failing or rwmaining behind for lack of books. All one needs is have Data to access the shared books. I am sure every school teacher, parent and student has directly or indirectly benefited from her services. This is one of the few positive uses of social media l have encountered free of charge but which is a great service to the nation. I can assure you that by the time other schools and even the government started offering books online during the Covid 19 time, our groups were already full and helping thousands of people. I would like to extend my profound appreciation to Melody and Khangelani and others whose names l dont have consent to mention, for your continued tireless efforts helping in sharing these books to reach every child in Zimbabwe.
I retire but remain in the groups. l have done my duty and now go into another arena calling for my time. Surprisingly l have never physically met all people I have engaged on social media and done long lasting business with. I hope one day l will meet all these great unsung heroes. I pray all those who benefitted and continue to do so are equally appreciative of the service offered. Thank you
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