OPINION| A tribute to the late Uncle Ali Katircioglu — a Turk who gave his all to South Africa - Generous, humble man whose dream it was to build the Nizamiye Complex in Midrand loved South Africa and South Africans and helped thousands of people
Sixteen years ago, I was at OR Tambo International airport, waiting for a gentleman named Ali Katircioglu. I had heard a lot about him but had never had a chance to meet him. He was about to arrive in South Africa to build a marvellous structure, both to showcase Turkish culture in South Africa and to promote intercultural exchange and dialogue.
It was a challenge for him and his friends to get the permissions for this giant project. However, the day he met Mandela in 2006 was a turning point. Mandela liked what he was trying to do, and requested him to add a clinic to the project, to which Uncle Ali happily agreed. Today, that clinic today provides free healthcare services to 400 people daily, which indicates how right Mandela was to make his request.
He always used to tell me how he loved Africans and how he missed them when he had to travel. Even when he went to visit his home and family in Turkey, it was difficult for him to stay there for more than a week, and he would come back to South Africa as quickly as he could. The Nizamiye Complex, which has a mosque, a school, a shopping centre and a clinic, is a place anyone, no matter their religion or culture, can visit. After a short time, it became a landmark inJohannesburg, acknowledged by the department of tourism as a tourist site.
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