Standard Bank hand over house to Shikongo

Windhoek - 2016 Paralympic gold medallist Ananias Shikongo received the keys to his newly-built house in Windhoek's Greenwell Matongo area on Monday. The house was built by Standard Bank Namibia in conjunction with the National Housing Enterprise to the tune of N$500 000. The house was presented as a token of appreciation for Shikongo's Gold medal, which he won at the 2016 Paralympic Games in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. Speaking on behalf of Sports Minister Erastus Utoni was his deputy Agnes Tjongarero. "I’m deeply humbled by the gesture of Standard Bank and the "Buy-a-brick" initiative. We knew the expectations after Ananias Shikongo’s victory, as they were the same as those after Johanna Benson's victory” Tjongarero said. The two-bedroom house with an open plan kitchen, a special toilet and a bathroom in the main bedroom also has build-in cupboards. Standard Bank's Head of Marketing and Communication Magreth Mengo said Shikongo is a role model to many athletes, including herself. “Ananias could have given up on his dreams after he lost his eye sight, however he didn't allow that to stop him from dreaming. Instead he used to work towards becoming the third Namibian to win something at the Paralympic games in Rio 2016. It was because of his inspiration, hard work that we decided to reward him by building this beautiful house in collaboration with NHE” Mengo said. The man of the moment, Shikongo, was applauded by government and Standard Bank, who also brought his parents from the north to Windhoek to be part of the celebrations. “I feel really happy, because it changed my life from a ghetto live to a city life. Thank you to Standard Bank for giving back to the nation. We are having many companies in the country, but they are just trying to ignore everything” Shikongo explained. Shikongo's parents were over the moon about their son's achievements. “I'm grateful to the GRN and will applaud the school he attended and everyone I'm grateful” Shikongo’s father Jason Shikongo said.

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Hileni Mathues