Top Phoenix learner misses awards ceremony after KZN dept fails to tell him
A Durban matric pupil feels robbed of his chance to bask in the glory of his achievements by the KwaZulu-Natal Department of Education which failed to inform him that he ranked sixth overall in the province.
As a result, Delano Duran Ramdaas of Greenbury Secondary in Phoenix who got seven As wasn't present at the Durban International Convention Centre yesterday where the department held its top achiever awards ceremony.
He says he was shocked when two of his fellow pupils who were also in the top ten and at the function phoned him to tell him his name was called out.
Ramdass has told Newswatch his school principal was informed on Tuesday by the department about only the two other learners being among the top ten matrics in the province.
"It's rather disappointing to know that a function of this magnitude which is supposed to honour the best in the province wasn't organised and planned correctly.
"It's not just disappointing in me thinking that I haven't achieved my goals but it's also disappointing in the capacity of the department who arranged a function of this magnitude," he said.
Ramdass says while preparing for the exams he had aimed to become one of the top ten achievers in the province.
The Phoenix born and raised pupil says being in the top ten is milestone for him especially coming from a previously disadvantaged community.
"Growing up in an area such as Phoenix, being able to experience the tries of poverty its quiet great to know that anybody from any social standing is able to achieve this, is great," he said.
Ramdass will be going to the University of Cape Town to study Mechatronic Engineering which is a combination of different kinds of engineering that will allow him to go into any engineering fields.
"Mechatronic engineers are those people who link in systems that engineers are a part of. For example in a car these days it doesn't work primarily on gears and the mechanics of it, it also has things like computers on board.
"Yes, you need your specialist engineers but you need a mechatronic engineer who is able to link those things to each other," he says.
(Photo via Facebook/Delano Duran Ramdaas)