Nkwenkwe Nkomo of South Africa is the group deputy chairman of FCB SA, South Africa's largest marketing communication group, and chairperson of the Advertising Standards Authority (ASA) of South Africa. He also served as one of 12 elected volunteer members of the

World Scout Committee The World Organization of the Scout Movement (WOSM ) is the largest international Scouting organization. WOSM has 173 members. These members are recognized national Scout organizations, which collectively have around 43 million participants. WOSM ...

, the main executive body of the

World Organization of the Scout Movement The World Organization of the Scout Movement (WOSM ) is the largest international Scouting organization. WOSM has 173 members. These members are recognized national Scout organizations, which collectively have around 43 million participants. WOS ...

. As an anti-

apartheid Apartheid (, especially South African English: , ; , "aparthood") was a system of institutionalised racial segregation that existed in South Africa and South West Africa (now Namibia) from 1948 to the early 1990s. Apartheid was ...

student activist in the 1970s, he was one of the so-called "

SASO nine The SASO/BPC trial, also known as the Black Consciousness trial, was an apartheid-era legal trial in South Africa which resulted in the conviction of nine Black Consciousness activists from the South African Students' Organisation (SASO) and B ...

" imprisoned on

Robben Island Robben Island ( af, Robbeneiland) is an island in Table Bay, 6.9 kilometres (4.3 mi) west of the coast of Bloubergstrand, north of Cape Town, South Africa. It takes its name from the Dutch word for seals (''robben''), hence the Dutch/Afrik ...

for six years. Nkomo speaks nine South African languages. "That came through living in the township, not through a formal program," says Nkomo. Nkwenkwe is

Xhosa Xhosa may refer to: * Xhosa people, a nation, and ethnic group, who live in south-central and southeasterly region of South Africa * Xhosa language, one of the 11 official languages of South Africa, principally spoken by the Xhosa people See als ...

for "little boy", and Nkomo means "cow", so his name means "cowboy". Nkomo always wears a signature

fez Fez most often refers to: * Fez (hat), a type of felt hat commonly worn in the Ottoman Empire * Fez, Morocco (or Fes), the second largest city of Morocco Fez or FEZ may also refer to: Media * ''Fez'' (Frank Stella), a 1964 painting by the moder ...

perched on his head.

South African Students' Organisation

In the 1970s, Nkomo was active in opposition to the

system in South Africa. He was a student leader in the

South African Students' Organisation The South African Students' Organisation (SASO) was a body of black South African university students who resisted apartheid through non-violent political action. The organisation was formed in 1969 under the leadership of Steve Biko and Barney P ...

(SASO), which broke away from the

National Union of South African Students The National Union of South African Students (NUSAS) was an important force for liberalism and later radicalism in South African student anti-apartheid politics. Its mottos included non-racialism and non-sexism. Early history NUSAS was founde ...

(NUSAS), and a national organiser of the

Black People's Convention The Black People's Convention (BPC) was a national coordinating body for the Black Consciousness movement of South Africa. Envisaged as a broad-based counterpart to the South African Students' Organisation, the BPC was active in organising resis ...

. He and eight other SASO leaders (known as the "

") were arrested in 1974 and charged with "conspiring to overturn the state by unconstitutional means". The

Black Consciousness The Black Consciousness Movement (BCM) was a grassroots anti-Apartheid Activism, activist movement that emerged in South Africa in the mid-1960s out of the power vacuum, political vacuum created by the jailing and banning of the African Nationa ...

leader

Steve Biko Bantu Stephen Biko (18 December 1946 – 12 September 1977) was a South African anti-apartheid activist. Ideologically an African nationalist and African socialist, he was at the forefront of a grassroots anti-apartheid campaign known ...

testified at length in his defence, a year before Biko was beaten to death by security policemen. The accused (including

Strini Moodley Strinivasa Rajoo "Strini" Moodley (22 December 1945 – 27 April 2006) was a founding member of the Black Consciousness Movement in South Africa. In 1976, he was convicted of terrorism in a trial involving members of the South African Student ...

and

Mosiuoa Lekota Mosiuoa Gerard Patrick Lekota (born 13 August 1948) is a South African politician, who currently serves as the President and Leader of the Congress of the People since 16 December 2008. Previously as a member of the African National Congress, ...

) were convicted and sentenced to prison. Nkomo spent two years in prison while on trial and six years on

, in the same prison as

Nelson Mandela Nelson Rolihlahla Mandela (; ; 18 July 1918 – 5 December 2013) was a South African Internal resistance to apartheid, anti-apartheid activist who served as the President of South Africa, first president of South Africa from 1994 to 1 ...

and many other anti-apartheid leaders.

Career in advertising

NN, as he is known to colleagues, is the group deputy chairman of FCB SA, South Africa's largest marketing communication group. When he was released from prison on 20 December 1982, Len van Zyl of what was then Lindsay Smithers took him on as a junior copywriter. He rose to creative director, a position he held for seven years, before being appointed group deputy chairman in 1995. His core functions center on corporate transformation, new business development, key client contacts and industry matters. In 2007, Nkomo was appointed chairperson of the Advertising Standards Authority (ASA) of South Africa. He was also the deputy chairperson of the 2010 National Communication Partnership for the

2010 FIFA World Cup , image = 2010 FIFA World Cup.svg , size = 200px , caption = ''Ke Nako. (Tswana and Sotho for "It's time") Celebrate Africa's Humanity'It's time. Celebrate Africa's Humanity'' (English)''Dis tyd. Vier Afrika se mensd ...

hosted in South Africa.

Scouting

He served two five-year terms as

Chief Scout A Chief Scout is the principal or head scout for an organization such as the military, colonial administration or expedition or a talent scout in performing, entertainment or creative arts, particularly sport. In sport, a Chief Scout can be the prin ...

of South Africa, from 1996 to 2005, of which he says, "As Chief Scout I am chief servant". Nkwenkwe Nkomo was elected at the 37th

World Scout Conference The World Organization of the Scout Movement (WOSM ) is the largest international Scouting organization. WOSM has 173 members. These members are recognized national Scout organizations, which collectively have around 43 million participants. WOSM ...

held September 2005 in

Yasmine Hammamet Hammamet ( ar, حمامات ', literally " Baths") is a town in Tunisia. Thanks to its beaches, it is a popular destination for swimming and water sports and is one of the primary tourist destinations in Tunisia. It is located in the south-easte ...

Tunisia ) , image_map = Tunisia location (orthographic projection).svg , map_caption = Location of Tunisia in northern Africa , image_map2 = , capital = Tunis , largest_city = capital , ...

, for a six-year term, along with five other members from a field of 15 candidates from around the world. Nkomo was the second South African to be elected to the World Scout Committee;

Garnet de la Hunt Herbert William Garnet de la Hunt (25 August 1933 – 28 April 2014) served as the Chief Scout of the Boy Scouts of South Africa, as well as the Vice-Chairman of the Africa Scout Committee, and was the first South African to be elected to the ...

was a member from 1996 to 2002 and held the post of chairman of the committee. Nkomo joined the

Daveyton Daveyton is a township in the Ekurhuleni Metropolitan Municipality of Gauteng in South Africa. It borders Etwatwa to the north-east, Springs to the south and Benoni to the south-west. The nearest town is Benoni, which is approximately 18 kilome ...

7th

Cub Scout Cub Scouts, Cubs or Wolf Cubs are programs associated with Scouting for young children usually between 7 and 12, depending on the organization to which they belong. A participant in the program is called a Cub. A group of Cubs is called a 'P ...

pack in 1957, when there were four separate associations for whites, coloureds, Indians and blacks whose association was called "Pathfinders". He was chairman for several years of the Daveyton Residents Committee, which had a projects committee that identified needs in the area and raised funds for development. One of the requests presented to the committee was by the Scouts. When their presentation failed to meet standards, Nkomo helped them re-work their presentation, resulting in the committee's decision to build a

Scout hall A Scout hall (also Scout hut, Scout den or Scout headquarters) is a building owned or rented and used as a meeting place by a Scout Group. General description A Scout hall typically consists of one or more large rooms which are used for games a ...

in the community. In 1991, he was approached by Colin Adcock, then chief executive of

Toyota is a Japanese multinational automotive manufacturer headquartered in Toyota City, Aichi, Japan. It was founded by Kiichiro Toyoda and incorporated on . Toyota is one of the largest automobile manufacturers in the world, producing about 10 ...

(one of Lindsay Smithers' clients) who had been asked to put together a marketing program for the

South African Scout Association Scouts South Africa is the World Organization of the Scout Movement (WOSM) recognised Scout association in South Africa. Scouting began in the United Kingdom in 1907 through the efforts of Robert Baden-Powell and rapidly spread to South Africa, ...

. He made a presentation to a Scout conference, and was then asked to "rejoin the movement", as Assistant Chief Scout. "One of the reasons I agreed to return to Scouting was the challenge to take it back to the community. Scouting is a premium youth movement, there to enable us, especially now, to move towards healing this country, to train leaders and empower people."

References

External links

* http://www.iem.co.za/embok3/speakers/nkwenkwe_nkomo.html {{DEFAULTSORT:Nkomo, Nkwenkwe World Scout Committee members Living people Anti-apartheid activists Prisoners and detainees of South Africa South African activists South African prisoners and detainees Xhosa people Year of birth missing (living people) Scouting and Guiding in South Africa