Modderdam High School in Bonteheuwel has been awarded a blue heritage plaque in memory of Professor Daniel Plaatjies by the Cape Town Heritage Foundation.
The blue plaque means an institution or building is being recognised as a heritage site and it is recognised all over the world.
Professor Plaatjies matriculated at Modderdam High School in 1981. He held a PhD in governance, public policy and public finance and was the chairperson of the Financial and Fiscal Commission. He died in 2020, at the age of 57.
Modderdam High School teacher Adnaan Adams made the application on behalf of the school for blue-heritage-plaque status.
Sigi Howes, the coordinator of the Blue Plaque Schools Project, said the foundation’s adjudication committee agreed that the application was worthy, as Professor Plaatjies deserved this recognition. The Cape Town Heritage Foundation sponsored the cost of the plaque.
The plaque was unveiled at a ceremony at the school on Saturday November 12.
At the event, Omar Parker, from the Bonteheuwel Historic Society, took the audience down memory lane, as he spoke about the steps outside the library, where many activists had met, including Professor Plaatjies.
“Daniel was a radical person. He would engage us in such a way that we at times questioned whether he is really our comrade. However, he taught us about intergenerational dialogue, which is such an important lesson. That inspires the work we do – to engage, preserve, have dialogues, and research many untold stories. In so-doing, we are connecting our past memories with the present, working towards a better future,” Mr Parker said.
Mr Plaatjies’ eldest daughter, Leandré Roman, said to his peers, her father was an outstanding intellectual, but to her he was her beloved dad.
“Education was one of the most fundamental things for my dad. Education is how we break certain generational cycles. My dad played a pivotal role in early childhood development in South Africa. One of the things he taught us is that education is important – that we need to look after ourselves before anyone else,” Ms Roman said.
She also expressed her “heartfelt gratitude” to the school for their “ongoing support of servant leadership”.
Bonteheuwel activist Henriette Abrahams said despite the high profile that Professor Plaatjies had held, “he was never this important person” because of his humility.
“Dan always came home, lending a hand in making things better. He was never an academic who spoke convoluted language. I am proud of Modderdam for this initiative, and I want to thank the Plaatjies family for sharing Dan with us. Our heroes and heroines are right here in the community – not out there,” Ms Abrahams said.
Principal Rhona Rayray said it saddened her when pupils and even parents didn’t realise the importance of education.
“People died so that pupils today can attain whatever they hope for. A simple thank you is not enough to express out immense gratitude. The principal does not make a school, and I want to thank Mr Adams, who worked hard behind the scenes, and the team I work with at school. We need to make every learner feel that they are somebody. Our goal is to make our learners global citizens, and Professor Plaatjies showed us that it is possible and that we do matter,” Ms Rayray said.
An ANC member of the provincial legislature, Khalid Sayed, who also attended the ceremony, described it as an excellent initiative.
“Often we forget our local heroes. They are our role models. I took Professor Plaatjies as a mentor. I remember him most as an intellectual with a passion to serve communities at grassroots level. He always challenged young people to think and in ways that they were not used to.”
