Imtiaz Sooliman – Founder said that his team was deeply grateful to the South African public

Uh, good evening. No. First of all, thank you to all South

Africans. To me the fact that South Africans responded in such a

manner, we were surprised this happened Monday night. I'm not on

social media, and on Tuesday morning, we were flooded with

thoughts and from the media saying, you know, what? Did this

happen last night? The public went crazy. And I did, and I was, I was

really surprised that kind of support. But look, we don't really

look for recognition, yeah, and we don't, you know, we not judging of

prejudice against human people getting an award for the good day

of that. We accept that. And as many people doing good in the

country, the continent and throughout the world, that's fine,

as the President's prerogative and that of the cabinet. Our our

intentions are very clear. When we serve, we serve for the benefit of

the people. We don't expect anything in return. We don't wait

for a thank you. We don't wait for recognition. And I explain that to

you in a minute

when I got instruction from a social teacher in Istanbul on the

sixth of August 1992

when he asked me to serve all people of all races, of all

religions, of all colors, of all classes, all cultures of any

geographical location in any very clear he said, My son, when you

doing this, some of people would love kindness, compassion and

mercy, and remember the dignity of man is foremost. When you do this,

you do this unconditionally.

You don't expect even a thank you.

In fact, in what you're going to be doing for the rest of your

life, expect to get a kick up your back. You don't get a kick up your

back. Regard it as a bonus. And then he said something very

significant. He said, My son, that whatever you do is done through

you and not by you,

and you understand that this thing is spiritual, that we don't take

credit for anything that is done, because there's a high hand over

our work. So really, you know, we had no issue not being recognized

or not being mentioned to us, 60 million South Africans recognize

us. To us that travel after 28 years, we are in the hearts of

every single person in this country. No Nobel Prize, no

mention of the head of state from any government or any award in the

world can replace that kind of joy and happiness to be in the heart

of every single person of your own country. Dr Suleiman, while we

know the gift of the givers for your work to feed 1000s in South

Africa and around the world, they're also providing in drought

and war stricken areas, helping in fire ravaged communities, and even

lending a hand in rescue during hostage situations. The covid 19

pandemic, arguably, was unlike any other disaster. Just talk us

through the work that you have been conducting since the outbreak

of this pandemic.

Well, in terms of No, you are right. It's unlike any other

disaster. It's a disaster that simultaneously has hit the whole

world. Normally, a disaster will hit one city in one country. We'll

have a couple of disasters in some other countries at the same time,

but no disaster beats the whole country, whole world at the same

time. Secondly, a disaster lasts, if you know, for seven to 10 days.

In an earthquake with sticks, we have such an SV teams, medical

teams, and thereafter it's a process of rebuilding. It's not a

continuous disaster, but covid 19 is a continuous disaster every

minute, every hour, every day, almost a year plus now. So it's

been a huge difficulty, and it's something you can't see. You know,

you don't know what this is. It's a virus. It's attacking so many

people, and it's attacking the people who are supposed to be

saving lives, healthcare workers. Large numbers of healthcare

workers have passed on in the second phase, and this is where we

started, when the lockdown was announced, it was said that the

lockdown was there to prepare the hospitals. So what is there to

prepare the hospitals? You prepare the medical staff, or protection,

or PPEs, when you bring in additional medical staff.

Unfortunately, both of this were not done. You know the crisis that

was in the PPE, 13 billion rands spent. Yes, it was spent. But what

do PPE is delivered to hospitals. We've been to 200 hospitals

nationwide, and we haven't seen every up till now, right now

today, we have been called for people for PPEs in various

hospitals in the country, so that we have failed them. In that

respect, it was not delivered. Secondly, and more importantly,

the hospitals were already understaffed before covid 19

started. If there was any experience that we learned from

Europe and America, because they were in a crisis, same as before

us, already we saw the toll it took for healthcare workers. So

the prudent thing to do was to get healthcare workers, those who want

to work in our hospitals, medical students who studied overseas, we

could have given them some kind of registration to be as backup for

healthcare workers. That wasn't done, and we can see the effects

right now. What's happening in second wave. The third thing,

which we got involved in testing immediately. We set up 10 testing

sites, put up mobile sites for assisted.

Country, because when you're testing with a big thing in the

beginning, when the when the first wave started, we put up tents, 37

tenths and a cost of 3 million Rand each in various hospitals,

because they wanted to triage the patients outside the hospital, not

inside the casualty where the virus would fit. Then we brought

in, of course, the PPEs of various kinds, all the hospitals. We spent

millions of that. We brought in non contact thermometers, post

OXImeters, and again, this was very worrying when we brought a

non contact thermometer, and it's not a complicated instrument,

that's what it means, expensive,

the nurses and the doctors started dancing like we brought them old

theater or an ICU. It shows they were so anxious and they were not

even getting non contact thermometers. So the question is,

again, did we do our job to prepare in hospitals? And I say

category, no, we did not do our job properly, and that's why there

was so much anxiety with all the doctors, the healthcare workers.

Then we brought them scrubs, and then they needed High Flow nasal

oxygen machines, which we delivered. And after that, many of

them wanted infrastructure. We spent 10 million Rand in doing a

dedicated ward in which was playing a 60 bed, dedicated Ward

30 days, which is that in sectors, we spent 750,000

we put up two wards, you know, for 20 bed, ICU, with high care, high

as you high care and oxygen points in five days. And then we picked

up a doctor's quarters in Bucha hospital and put in 120 bed

facility. So we bring a lot of things, but not only the medical

side. We put in one more thing, we put in 90 paramedics in hospital

at six nurses, because they were short staffed. The other thing, we

got involved in balls, food distribution, 320,000

food parcels, already hundreds we supported and providing fodder for

the animals. But these are some of the things that we need in covid,

in the medical part of it. And if you come into a third wave, we

have to correct to make sure that enough medical staff, because

hospitals, otherwise it's going to be a disaster, right? We are

running out of time. But before I let you go, just briefly, tell us

what's next for the gift of the givers.

While the same thing that we've been doing all the time, you know,

hospitals are still calling us. They still want infrastructure,

they still need staff, they still need PPEs. They need or the same

autopsy matters. They need stuff we're carrying on with that. A lot

of areas still want boards because they can't sanitize, they can't

wash, they can't bring their medication. We put in six four

holes Adelaide last week, opened it. We're busy putting more balls

in pedi. We've got teams going in Makanda, in Aberdeen, in half,

Mayor pedi, sorry, the fort, cofami, all different areas.

People want water because hospitals can't function without

water, and it's so many hospitals without water. And of course,

there's been a huge public demand on us to get involved the

vaccines. We're not involved in the vaccine. We don't want to get

involved in the vaccine, but we're getting a lot of pressure from the

public, from various quarters, from corporate from medical

societies, from the banking councils, everybody asked us to

get involved, and we are busy. And we will spoke to Hardy partner

about this. There are a lot of issues taking place in the

background, and maybe something will come up. We don't know, but

we are busy with something. And lastly, how can ordinary South

Africans get involved with your projects? Well, first of all,

ordinary South Africans get to what's very important. You know,

we all talking about the vaccines. We all worried about people

talking about ivermectin. You know that all and all kinds of

prevention, the best thing they can do is to make sure they take

precaution. We can't be reckless. The biggest safeguard, the biggest

vaccine, the biggest statement, the biggest help in covid 19 is

prevention. Make sure you wear your mask. Make sure you sanitize.

Make sure that you don't get involved in big crowds. And

importantly, the super spreaders are the families, because when we

go home and we work in different companies, we all take the mask

off. It's not appropriate. It's not politically correct to wear a

mask in your own house. You work in different companies. You know,

if you come back, you are a risk. You need to take care in your own

homes. People don't say that. The second wave, four to five family

members have died per house, and it's because we're not taking the

care. And the other way you can support us, of course, is to

spread the word of what we're doing. You don't have to give any

money, just spread the word. And some you can afford it, unless

it's thirdly. You want to give money the details on our banks, on

our website, or you can call the weekday or 807

86911,

and of course, if big companies want to support us, they can call

us. They all know how to get all of us to give big support, big

items. But one last point, we don't have to support gift of the

youth. You know people in your street, in your village, in your

home, in your area, that have been affected. Many people who are

doing well, who lived well, have lost their jobs. Ordinary people

have lost their jobs. Ordinary people are in difficulty. Quietly,

find them out. Assist them. Quiet.

It's dignified, it's beneficial. It's how South Africa help each

other. You don't have to come to gift of the givers. Many of you

know other people in the country go and help them. They'll value

you for the rest of your life. Well, that was a gift of the

givers. Founder, Doctor MTS Suliman, saying that even without

a Nobel Peace Prize, they enjoy the support of over 60 million

South Africans. Well.