By DESTINE NDE
On 14 February 2025, I was driving into Oudtshoorn with Mr Ewald Loock, former Mayor of the Dr Beyers Naude Local Municipality (based in Graaff-Reinet), when we came across a giant construction project in progress on Rademeyer Street. Immediately we started chatting about it, and Mr Loock told me that it was going to be a mall, the second of that magnitude in Oudtshoorn. He also told me that this Klein Karoo town was a well-governed and prosperous place, hence its rapid growth in commerce and infrastructure. As he went on to handle his business at the Oudtshoorn private high school, I decided to stop by and take a look at the project.
Arriving at the gate, Mr Gordon Piedt, the security officer on duty, hurried to me and asked what the reason was for my visit. I told him, and he promptly adorned me with a safety cap and jacket. Everyone entering the premises is obliged to wear them. ‘There’, he pointed with excitement, ‘is the site manager.’ I hastened to him. He is Mr Morne Olivier, a young good-natured Caucasian man. You wouldn’t believe he was the site manager of such a huge project.
After a brief introduction, Morne told me, with a proud smile on his face, ‘Today is your lucky day. The Bosses are right here on site; the contractor, a government safety Inspector, and the former mayor. They’re presently in the site office. Let me give the contractor a call to inform him that you’re here.’
The call went unanswered. After three attempts, he concluded that they were probably busy, but he would try to call them again soon. He then explained to me that he too was quite busy, and had some urgent matters to attend to. ‘You can go and wait in the site office. ‘I’ll get back to you as soon I can,’ he promised, with a reassuring grin. I too requited his kind manners with a smiling promise to be patient.
When I first spoke to Gordon, the security officer, I noticed that he too was very friendly and good-mannered. So instead of going to the site office as Morne had suggested, I returned to the security kiosk at the gate. There, Gordon and I soon began a thought-provoking discussion. In the beginning, the conversation was wholly about the project: he told me that he had been working there since the beginning, and would likely continue to work there even after the project had been completed.
Gordon Piedt in his security kiosk.
‘Because’, he explained, ‘the security company for which I’m working has already applied for the tender to provide security services to the mall.’ He also said, as far as he had observed so far, the project was very well-managed.
‘All the safety regulations are strictly adhered to. This project is a very big thing for Oudtshoorn. It would provide many new jobs. Because all the major supermarkets will be here, like Food Lovers, Checkers, Dischem. Even clothing shops like Markham and Woolworths are going to be here. In fact, as we speak, CVs are already pouring in.’
I asked him whether he liked working there. He said ‘Ja’, and proceeded to tell me more about himself, his family and his work history. It was this train of words, indeed, which took an unexpected turn and led us to a completely different and engaging topic.
This second subject of our exchanges was more business-like in nature, and quite graver in temper than the previous one. In fact,it was enrapturing and eye-opening .When I asked him whether he enjoyed working as a security guard on the construction site, he had said yes, but the emotions expressed on his face had contradicted the answer. He was obviously downcast and doleful. His looks were furtive. But those unhappy affects lasted only for as long as he took to answer the unsolicited question that had triggered them in the first place.
As soon as he told me that ‘if I had the means, I wouldn’t hesitate to go into the ostrich business’, his countenance lightened up again, as though a sweet fancy had possessed his mind and lifted up his spirits. He then went on to tell me amazing and enviable things about the ostrich business, and did so with quite agreeable humour and passion.
‘Most of the money in Oudtshoorn,’ he said, ‘comes from ostrich farming. It’s the backbone of our economy. I used to work on an ostrich farm with a slaughterhouse on it. Ostriches, eggs, meat and feathers are all boxed up and exported – much of it to Canada and America. Before, they didn’t have ostriches, and were also not interested. But nowadays they’re so interested that they’re coming to buy live ostriches to take back to Canada. All the top guys here, all the big businesses, are involved with ostrich. Oudtshoorn would crumble without it.’
As he spoke, he became more and excited and animated. And I, too, became more and more interested and eager to learn more. All this while, moreover, we maintained an intense eyeball-to-eyeball contact. But the moment I managed to release mine from the captivating grip of his, they fell on the Cape Karoo Ostrich Emporium: an imposing, magnificent, and attractive building directly opposite the construction site. ‘What’s that building for?’ I asked, with my index finger pointing at it.
‘It’s a place where you can go and have coffee and cakes’, he replied.
‘A fancy place like that just for coffee and cakes’, I exclaimed, not so much in disbelief as in shock.
‘That’s where all the ostrich guys meet. You can also rent it for your private celebrations, like birthdays, graduations, weddings, end-of-year events, and such like.’
I had, to say the least, been totally engrossed in this chat. But suddenly, the sight of three elderly white gentlemen brought me back to reality. Gorden whispered to me that they were the three VIPs Morne had told me about. I rushed to them without delay, quickly introduced myself, and began mining for precious bits of info.
‘My good sir’, I addressed the Mayor, ‘could you tell me who the sponsors of this project are, please?’ He told me bluntly that he had no comments to make, because he is ‘the leader of the opposition’. I insisted for a bit, but he would not budge. So I turned to the Safety Inspector: ‘And you, sir, are you satisfied with the safety and progress of the project?’ But he, too, was uncooperative. All he told me was that ‘everything is going on just fine. That’s all I can say.’
And to the contractor, I asked: ‘Why was this specific location chosen for the mall?’ But, just as if the haughtiness and disagreeable attitude of the Mayor was contagious, he too was quite unresponsive and taciturn. ‘I’m just the contractor doing my job here’, he said with a sly smile. ‘As such I can’t make any public statements. Actually, Morne is the one you should speak to. I believe you’ve spoken to him already. He’s the one managing the day-to-day activities.’
Undaunted, I returned to Morne. He was now ready to spare me a few minutes. ‘What’s the name of this project?’ I began. — ‘Klein Karoo Market’, he answered.
‘What’s the name of the contractor?’ — ‘Ruwacon’.
‘When did the project begin, and when will it finish?’ — ‘It began on May 2024, and will finish end of April this year.’
‘What inspired the building of the mall in this area?’ — ‘The people around here used to travel far in order to do proper shopping. So the aim of the mall is to bring these big shops to them. We have 38 of them already. It means a lot to them. Moreover it will offer a lot of new jobs.’
‘How many workers do you have at present?’ — ‘About 300.’
‘And you’re managing them all alone, I mean their shifts and complaints and everything?’ — ‘No. There’re like 40 different companies here: plumbing, electricity, bricklaying, security, glass fitting, hot-boilers, aluminium, landscaping, etc. Each of them has to manage their own staff. I just oversee the whole thing.’
‘So if anyone gets wounded here, whose responsibility would it be?’ — ‘Mine. Because, though autonomous, they’re all subcontracted under us. That’s why we take safety regulations very strictly here.’ — ‘What’s the size of the mall?’ – ‘You can visit the project official web page. All those tiny details are there. Just search Dorpstraat on the internet.’
‘Mind if I take your picture?’ I asked nicely. – ‘No. I’m a shy guy. I don’t want to be famous’, he refused kindly.
I went again to Morne and asked him about the Ostrich Safari posters on the streets. In the same ardent and affable manner, he told me everything I needed to know about it, and some more.He even gave me directions on how to get there. I left quite satisfied, and marvelled for the rest of the day about the provokingly impressive things I had learned about the ostrich business in Oudtshoorn.
FEATURED IMAGE: The Klein Karoo Market under construction, with the Ostrich Emporium in the background. All images: the author.
Wonderful piece. A truly original voice. Bravo !