Imtiaz Sooliman – Gift of the Givers’ on being named the Social Justice Champion for 2021
AI: Summary ©
The representative discusses the unrest during COVID-19 and how it has impacted people of different races. They emphasize the need to promote everyone's goodness and promote a society that is good for everyone. The representative also mentions a recent award and the importance of fixing society.
AI: Summary ©
Case at an unrest during the covid 19, you would find more affluent
people, generally, of particular color. Say, You know what, we've
been giving charity to some extent, but we now understand how
the less fortunate, the underprivileged have been fitting
all these years. It's time to embrace them fully, to increase
the charity and do things together, and you would find
white, black, Indian, Catholic, all working together for the
purpose of each other and for the purpose of those individuals in
the address itself. The same thing happened, you know. And you would
think that after there was such kind of conflict, there would be
bad feeling, there'll be hardship, there'll be distancing. The
amazing thing is, after it all stopped around the 18th of July.
On the 19th of July, if you walked in the streets and you saw the
people of different race groups, you would expect to see tension.
It was like nothing had happened. People got together. There was a
willingness to work together, not happy with what had happened, and
fix the country up. And ever since then, there's been so much that
has come out of that. If you look at all the workshops, the dialog
that the corporate intervention, community leaders, you know,
residents association, everybody is saying, we need to fix our
relationships with bridge the gap between rich and poor. We need to
fix what's holding us apart and what's causing problems. So as
there's been a lot of learning and people want to be together.
There's no movement to separate people. There's everything driving
people together, which has been a great, great lesson from covid 19
and the unrest.
All right, we've talked a lot about the work that you and your
organization have done over time and particularly in the last two
years, but I was very lucky to have met you decades ago, when we
were both very young and had jet black hair, and I met you because
you had won an award as a young achiever. And so the question then
becomes, what was it that got you into this life of service? Because
this has been your life for most of your life now,
yes, you know, it's not a conventional organization. You
know, let's make it clear. And I need to explain it India, so
they'll get up on morning and say it's with a form gift for
forgiveness, it never happened like that. And for write a
constitution and have a foreign principle. I met a spiritual
teacher in Turkey, 91 a Sufi Sheik is a long story I got there, but
in any case, I went back in August. And on sixth of August,
1992
it was a Thursday night, at 10pm they just had a prayer ceremony.
And after the prayer ceremony, the teacher was sitting in one corner
of the room, and I was in the other corner. He looked me in the
eye, and he looked heavenwards and in FLUENT Turkish. And I don't
speak a word of Turkish, but I understood every single word that
he said. He said, My son, I'm not asking you, I'm instructing you to
form an organization. In Arabic, the name will be wakul Waki
freedom translated. It means gift of the givers. You will serve all
people of all races, all religions, all colors, all
classes, all cultures, of any geographical location and of any
political affiliation, but you will serve them unconditionally.
You will expect nothing in return, not even a thank you. This is an
instruction for you for the rest of your life, and remember that
whatever you do is done through you and not by you. And then I
told him, but what exactly do you mean and what do I have to do? He
told me, one life you will know for 29 years I don't know what to
do, when to do, how to do. Wow, that's a remarkable, remarkable
story, EMTs, but we're so grateful that you've stayed the course, he
did the call, and have done the work, and I'm sure that there are
many that now look up to you and want to follow and do what you do.
Yes, you know, and I'm happy for that, not because of myself,
because, you know, we need to promote goodness in every way we
need. We need a society that focuses on goodness, even if
people have some bad spot in them or not some good spot in them. We
need to encourage the good within that person. And if you keep doing
that as a society, keep looking for the good in this person that
seems to have bad in time good on our power, you know, badness. I
want to I don't see whether it's something not good. And that is
spirituality, that is faith, that is belief, that is the essence of
human. Human is generally good, and God has made her, made us
merciful and compassionate. And we keep striving from now with
ourselves, for our kids, for our parents, for our neighbors, what
our what our different Grace groups, in work, in school,
wherever, and just keep promoting good and cut out the debt which is
not good in time. Peter, we will transform the society, and we will
fix this country. This country has a great future. It has great
people, and great things can be achieved. And I'm hoping at some
point, all those who left the country will come flying back here
to serve this country in.
As hard as all of us who are still here to fix it up. Dr Imtiaz
Suleiman, always a great pleasure talking to you congratulations on
this latest Award, which I guess in many ways, symbolizes a
lifetime of service. Thank you so much indeed for what you do, and
thank you for joining us this evening.
Thank you, Peter and my special thanks to all South Africans who
would have never have achieved this without you. Thank you so
much.