VASSIE RAJAH

Vassie Rajah, son of the late Puckree and Catherine Rajah, and son-in-law of the late Jeevaruthnam (Kitty) and Visalatchi Indranee Moodley, was born in Pietermaritzburg on 23 January 1956.  Rajah married Shamala (nee Moodley) and they were blessed with three children Ashen, Devlin and Megan.  Sadly, Rajah passed away on 15 February 2016 at a Pietermaritzburg hospital, aged 60 years.

Vassie Rajah’s life was multifaceted. His life as a learner was distinguished, his career of 38-years as an educationist was outstanding, his sporting prowess was noteworthy and his role as a sports administrator and coach, remarkable.  Rajah’s firm early grounding; his amiable, amicable and genial personality; and the unfailing love and support of his devoted wife, Shamala, and their children, sustained and enabled him to uphold the fundamental principles that guided his life.

Rajah received his primary education at the TPA Primary School, in Pietermaritzburg.  A natural athlete, his contribution to school sports was enormous. He was one of the most versatile sports boys of his time, having excelled in soccer, athletics and gymnastics.  He was also blessed with incredible leadership skills.  This was clearly demonstrated when he captained the Pietermaritzburg primary schools’ soccer team, which went on to win the Natal Championships in 1967.

On completing his primary education, Rajah enrolled at the Woodlands High School in 1969, and matriculated there in 1973.  Throughout his high school career, Rajah represented Woodlands at soccer and athletics.  At Woodlands High, Rajah also encountered one of Pietermaritzburg’s cricketing greats, Mr. Gopaul Manicum (now late) who was the school’s Physical Education educator.  Rajah was attracted to Mr. Manicum’s democratic leadership and easy communication style, and chose Mr. Manicum as his mentor and role model.  It was not surprising therefore that on his graduation from Woodlands High, Rajah proceeded to the University of Durban-Westville where he qualified as an educator, with Physical Education and Mathematics as his principal teaching subjects.  Rajah’s life became inextricably linked with education and sport.

In 1977, the then Department of Education appointed Rajah as an educator at the Baijoo and Maharaj Primary School in Raisethorpe, Pietermaritzburg.  Rajah was among a new generation of educators who came into prominence in the 1980s.  He was a sound educator and a person of great sensitivity; he worked effectively, honestly and selflessly in the pursuit of all that is good, truthful and wonderful; he displayed quiet strength, perseverance and consistency in striving for quality education for all learners in the midst of apartheid’s racist education system and in post-apartheid South Africa.

Rajah was imbued with the overall well-being of his learners and he adopted a learner-centred approach geared to the development of an enquiring and inquisitive young mind.  His pastoral care and interpersonal relationships led even the most challenging and difficult learners to seek his help and guidance. Rajah’s noble qualities also rubbed off on his colleagues and associates at the various educational institutions he served.  Rajah’s meritorious contribution to education did not go unnoticed.

In 1987, Rajah was promoted as Head of Department to Zinniaville Combined School in Rustenburg (now in the North West Province).  All the exceptional qualities that Rajah painstaking developed as an educator came to the fore in Rustenburg.  The school community in Rustenburg recognized his professional ability, sense of integrity, deep humanity, demonstrable leadership and balanced judgement, and was inspired by his impressive qualities.  It was an extremely difficult time for all concerned when Rajah was scheduled to leave Rustenburg on transfer to Ridgeview Primary School in Northdale, Pietermaritzburg, in 1990.  After spending eight years at Ridgeview School, Rajah was promoted as Principal of the TPA Primary School in Newholmes, Pietermaritzburg.  This appointment was very special to him and his family as the TPA School was his alma mater, the institution he attended as a primary school learner.

The state-aided Baijoo and Maharaj Primary School where Rajah was first appointed as an educator was closed permanently, and the Allandale Primary School was built as its replacement. Rajah was later promoted from the TPA Primary School to the post of Principal at the Allandale Primary School in Pietermaritzburg.  Rajah remained as Principal of Allandale Primary until his retirement in January 2016.  He had given 38 years of dedicated service as an educator and principal.  His fellow colleagues in the field of education have testified to Rajah’s natural ease and spontaneity, his patience and sympathy, his sincerity and concern for people, his openness to diverse views and opinions, and the humane manner in which he motivated fellow educators and encouraged learners to give off their best.

Rajah’s early sporting skills and talents at primary and secondary schools continued at the club level in his later years.  At soccer, he was a team-player who commanded the central midfield player-position and captivated spectators with his adroit distribution of the ball. His vision, understanding and ability to adapt to different game plans were his greatest asset. He started his club football with Hillview Football Club as a junior. He then played for Atlantis Football Club, D’Rangers Football Club and Wolves Football Club before ending his playing days with the Leeds Football Club’s over-35 team.   He also developed into a very accomplished volleyball player and played for the United Sports and Social Club (USSC), which he helped found on January 9, 1985, and served as its first President. In addition, Rajah represented the Teachers’ Association of South Africa (TASA) and the South African Democratic Teachers’ Union (SADTU) in both soccer and volleyball for many years.

Rajah’s sporting career and his specialist training as a physical education teacher naturally drew him into the arena of coaching, sports administration and management across various codes and groupings, beginning in 1978.  Rajah coached and managed the soccer, cricket, volleyball, table tennis, swimming, athletics and gymnastics teams of the Midlands Primary Schools Sports Association over a number of years.  In 1980, Rajah served as an executive member of the Pietermaritzburg Primary Schools Sports Association, and was elected its President in 1984 and 1985. Rajah relinquished the position of president when the Baijoo and Maharaj Primary School, where he was based, withdrew from the Association as it was closing down. On his return from Rustenburg in 1990, Rajah rekindled his relationship with the school sports association, now under the auspices of the newly named Midlands Primary Schools Sports Association (MPSSA) and in 1994, was elected its President.

Amidst the euphoria of the newly emerging democratic dispensation in South Africa in the early 1990s, Rajah played an influential role in 1995 in facilitating and coordinating the amalgamation of the primary schools of all the respective education departments into one school sports body under the banner of the KwaZulu-Natal Midlands School Sports Association (KZNMSSA). The KZNMSSA subsequently became a regional affiliate of the United School Sports Association of South Africa (USSASA).  Rajah served as the Vice-President for both the primary and high school sections of KZNMSSA until 2003.  In addition, he held the post of President: Zone 4 (Northern Suburbs) Primary Schools in 2000 and 2001 and continued to serve on the executive committee of Zone 4 until 2003.  During his career, he also had the distinction of officiating at the National Athletics Championships in 1996, 1997 and 1998.

Rajah was committed to, and a firm believer in, the value of sport and its role in youth development.  In consequence, he understood the critical role of the United Sports and Social Club (USSC) in stimulating interest and promoting sport among children and adults, on training men and women in leadership, and in stimulating and developing a greater sense of social responsibility among its members.  In his role as the first President of the USSC, Rajah held firm to the belief that all men and women, irrespective of their stations in life, their interests and occupations, and their different social and economic standings could unite in sport and self-improve. Together with Shamala, his wife, Rajah worked to introduce various codes of sports to cater for all club members. To this end, they coordinated a programme that focused on water safety (and swimming) and conducted lessons on Thursday evenings at the Olympic Swimming Baths, while Rajah also undertook to coordinate the club’s volleyball activities at the old Baijoo & Maharaj Primary School grounds on Sunday mornings.

The USSC’s interest in volleyball gained significant momentum and, in April 1985, the foundation for the formation of the Midlands Volleyball Association (MVA) was initiated.  The MVA held its inaugural meeting on 27 June 1985, and Rajah was elected President of the newly constituted Association, a position that he was re-elected to in 1986, 1991 and 1992.  In addition, Rajah was elected as Vice-President of the Natal Volleyball Union in 1986, a position he later vacated given his promotion as Head of Department at the Zinniaville Combined School in Rustenburg.  Rajah had also established himself as an astute and brilliant technically-minded volleyball coach and mentor.  Consequently, he was appointed coach to the Midlands Volleyball Association district team which participated in the Natal Inter-District tournament in 1986 at the Newholmes Way grounds in Pietermaritzburg, and in 1991, he again coached the Midlands Men’s provincial team at the national championships in Port Elizabeth.

Rajah also served, with distinction, on the Parent Committee of the Shotokan Karate Club and assisted the Club in an administrative capacity from 1991 to 1999.  In addition, he served on the Board at the Sunlit Gardens Children’s Home in Pietermaritzburg.  Rajah also played an influential role in the establishment of the Sports Veterans’ Association (SVA) on 4 August 2010 and served as one of its mentors until his passing away in 2016.

Rajah led a full and remarkable life, simple and without pretences, and one that serves as a source of inspiration to all those who had the good fortune to know and interact with him.  His was a life dedicated to his family, friends, colleagues and learners.  His long and distinguished career added lustre and distinction in the fields of education and sport. He has left behind a rich and immortal legacy of the wonderful values he cherished and so bravely upheld.  His passing away has created a huge void across multiple dimensions and in the lives of many in the city of Pietermaritzburg.

It has been a singular honour and blessing for his wife, Shamala, their children Ashen, Devlin and Megan, and relatives and friends to have journeyed along life’s path with Vassie Rajah.  In honour of his memory, those of us who knew him need to emulate his life’s lessons and his commitment to the struggle for a society free of oppression and exploitation.  In the words of William Morris, we need to:

“Join in the only battle

Wherein no man can fail,

For whoso fadeth and dieth,

Yet his deeds shall still prevail.”

By Cecil Seethal & Jay Rangiah