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'Brenda had ubuntu'
21/05/2004 08:39 - (SA)
Zwelitsha, Eastern Cape - The community hall here was jam-packed on Thursday as more than 1000 people attended a memorial service for the late pop diva Brenda Fassie.
The event, which was organised by the provincial Department of Sport, Recreation, Arts and Culture, saw Fassie fans, including children still in school uniform, flock into the hall as a disc jockey played Mabrr's hits loud.
Addressing people during the event, Sport, Recreation, Arts and Culture MEC Nomsa Jajula said the nation needed to acknowledge and appreciate what Fassie had done for the poor, the orphans and the homeless.
"When people of Boipatong were forcibly removed from their birth place and died during the process, Brenda composed a song and sang it in their honour," said Jajula.
"The profit she made from that song, she donated it to those families.
"All we want to say to her is that we don't only appreciate your music. But the role you played in the society was very much appreciated."
Jajula said the youth must learn something from the singer.
"Brenda was very proud of herself. She was proud of her clan name Madiba. She was willing to share the little she had with everyone in her community.
"As young people, we must learn from that," she said.
Crowds danced as if it were no memorial service, when Fassie's first hit, Weekend Special, was played.
"There will never be another Mabrr," said one Fassie fan, Nompazamo Ngxikwe of Zwelitsha.
Ngxikwe said her dream was to attend the funeral, but she doubted she would be able to.
"If I had the money, I would surely go. I loved Brenda very much. This festive atmosphere reminds me of the good old days," said Ngxikwe.
"Brenda had a very soft spot for poor people. She had ubuntu. That's why I loved her. All good people die. She must rest in peace."
Fassie died in a Johannesburg hospital after falling into a coma following an asthma attack.
Her funeral will be held in Cape Town on Saturday.
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