04 Dec 2018

The road to sustainable living can be challenging and daunting, more especially if someone is unschooled.

But Ms Gothusamang Phologolo, 57, of Hukuntsi believes that as long as one has the brain, legs and hands they are ready to meet the challenges of life.

She said the passion to run her own business was conceived from a tender age, and she opened her first tuck-shop in Hukuntsi to sustain her family.

Ms Phologolo said most people secured jobs on the basis of their skills set, but for a woman who was struggling to put food on the table, skills set was the last thing on her mind.

The mother of two praised her small business for improving her family’s fortunes, adding “the shop brought significant changes to my life because I managed to buy a car from its dividends.”

Ms Phologolo said the urge to turn around her life forced her to buy a car to help her in the daily running of her household; little did she know she was paving a way for a successful taxi business.

Considering her age, one would be forgiven for thinking she would never dream of turning to wheel steering and destinations to uplift her life.

She revealed that she wakes up around 5am to get ready to ferry her customers to their various destinations through the dusty roads of the village.

“I struggled a lot in my effort to get my light duty driving licence, it took me almost a year,” she stated.

In 2014, Ms Phologolo said she applied for a taxi permit for Hukuntsi, which she was consequently given in 2015.

She said the transport business was a male-dominated club and a woman trying to penetrate it was not only frowned upon, but also met with lot of resistance.

“Sometimes I get subjected to some minor acts when I drive my taxi, but some of the customers encourage and support me. Others try to block my way to show they are more adroit drivers and to prove that it is a male-dominated job,’’ she said

However, for the fervent woman, perseverance has rewards far beyond the gender stereotypes she endures.

“It would not work if I left the house thinking that I’m a woman, but to compete with men I have to be like them,” she added.

Often dubbed the master of hustle by her colleagues, Ms Phologolo emphasised that she was interested in making her clients satisfied at the end of the trip regardless of their gender and kill the notion that women were bad drivers.

“To have both men and women as my clients and make them feel comfortable is the greatest triumph for me,” she added.

The devoted member of New Nazareth Church has ascribed her success to her church, as it has taught her to persevere, be disciplined and work hard to achieve her dreams.

Of late, Ms Phologolo said her rocky relationship with customers, especially men, had improved as they now prefered to be driven around by her because she was cooperative and friendly.

She said she made close to P250 daily and was able to buy a second car, revealing her plans to upgrade by buying a mini-bus.“Regardless of the challenges I endured when I first started, I can testify that the taxi business has improved my standard of living and changed my perception towards life,” she said

Ms Phologolo said people made their own destinies, and that if she had sat home, she would have had no future. “I worked hard to get this far,” she said.

She stated that by holding on to what she started, she was sending a message to people, especially women of her age, that no matter how difficult things are, when you start, somehow they would fall into place. Ends