King TeeDee’s long walk for education

Martin Morocy, better known as The Dogg or King Tee Dee, is planning a two-day 70km charity walk to Okahandja to build proper classrooms for students.

King Tee Dee says the charity walk is a collaboration with the Ministry of Education, Arts and Culture aimed at raising awareness for schools in areas where students are taught in makeshift classrooms.

“The funds and awareness raised through this walk will be directed towards constructing and improving schools, and creating an environment conducive to learning,” he says.

The initiative aims to unburden the government of its many duties and contribute to the shared goal of bridging the educational gap in providing children with opportunities to reach their full potential.

He says the idea came to him while on his ‘Smart Cut’ campaign with the Ministry of Health and Social Services to encourage boys and men to embrace the benefits of circumcision.

“The project taught me the power of education in transforming lives and sparked a vision of building proper educational infrastructure in underserved areas of our country,” he says

King Tee Dee says the walk is more than a physical journey, it is an odyssey that symbolises hope and a call to action to inspire the public to help children.

Education executive director Sanet Steenkamp says the funds raised through the charity walk will go towards the construction of classrooms in schools in rural communities.

“We have more than 4 000 makeshifts and temporary classrooms made of mud, sticks, and zinc material,” she says.

She says the ministry constructed 502 classrooms last year and plans to construct 512 classrooms this year.

Agriculture deputy executive director Elijah Ngurare says providing proper education for children is a shared responsibility and requires everyone’s participation.

“It means our executive directors, our ministers, our deputy minister, and all corporate entities, we must take this walk together, we should also take the step King Tee Dee has taken,” he says.