On 25 March, Tuks Rag will host the RAG of Hope Day Benefit Concert on the Rag Farm \u201cin order to raise funds to assist students through initiatives such as food hampers and fees\u201d.<\/p>\n
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According to Rag chairperson, Roahan Gouws, some of the proceeds from the concert will go to students that need assistance the most. \u201cThis will be done by opening a communication channel for students to come to us with this particular need and we will then allocate food hampers accordingly. We also plan to use some of the money to allocate to students to help them with books and funding,\u201d he said. Gouws hopes that the concert will have a large turnout to fulfil the Rag 2017 vision of Ubuntu, \u201cwhere students are assisting other students.\u201d<\/p>\n
The event boasts an impressive line-up, including Cassper Nyovest, A-Reece, Desmond and the Tutus, and several other notable South African artists. \u201cFor us to secure a solid line up, we knew that the artists would play the biggest role towards the participation of the event. We released statements on our social media where we asked students to comment on what artists\u00a0they wanted for the concert. This made it easier in creating a lineup that suits the needs of all of the students in a diverse manner\u201d, said Gouws.<\/p>\n
When asked about the reaction to the redesigned annual Rag tradition, Gouws noted that although the float-building tradition of previous years and the float procession that followed \u201chelped first years in residences bond and make friends\u2026money was spent on floats that did not serve community engagement anymore.\u201d He further stated that although they received positive comments from students regarding the change, others were \u201cupset by the loss of such a long-standing tradition.\u201d<\/p>\n
Gouws held that it was only through change that community engagement could be kept active and productive. \u201cThe most challenging part in organising this concert had to be the time constraint we worked against\u201d adding that \u201cwith all the strikes of last year we could only start planning the concert in January this year.\u201d He added that another challenge Rag faced was getting artists of a diverse nature to accommodate all UP students. Events to win free tickets will be held in the Piazza in the weeks leading up to the concert. Tickets are also available online<\/a> and at the gate.<\/p>\n Written by:\u00a0Ditebogo Tshaka<\/p>\n