Ex-Gangsters Hold the Key to Solving Cape Town’s Gang Problem Wandisile Nqeketho’s Mission to Halt the Spread of Gangsterism

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WORDS Geena Grant

We walk into a small dilapidated cell, furnished with an uncovered toilet, ancient sink and rusty bunk, housing two wafer-thin mattresses. The walls, thinly painted green and white, are now tinged with yellow. They feature the desperate scrawls of the eight prisoners who ex-gangster Sam, says would currently be overcrowding the space meant for two, and those who came before them. One reads, “Mama I’m sorry.” Another, “This is the end of me…”

Founder and CEO of 18 Gangster Museum, in the township of Khayelitsha, Wandisile Nqeketho, aims to ensure that no more youths from the community experience conditions like these, as a result of being arrested and sentenced to prison for acts of gang-related violence. To do this, he established this concept museum in 2014, featuring a life-size installation of a typical South African jail cell, aimed at educating the youth on the dangers of getting involved in gangs. Here ex-gang members host tours, giving people a first-hand account of what gang culture entails.

“One of the biggest problems when it comes to dealing with the issue of gangs is being reactionary. People need to be proactive.” – Wandisile Nqeketho

Inside 18 Gangster Museum’s replica of a South African jail cell.

He believes that “one of the biggest problems when it comes to dealing with the issue of gangs is being reactionary. People need to be proactive.” This means not waiting for this issue to spiral further out of control before we respond, but to start where gangsterism begins.

The Dark History of Gangsterism in the Western Cape

Sadly, Cape Town is a notoriously dangerous city, both within South Africa and on a global scale. Recently it was ranked the 15th most dangerous city in the world by World Atlas, based on its rate of 62.25 homicides per 100 000 people. Experts believe these staggering statistics are largely due to the prevalence of gangs.

With hundreds of these groups in the Western Cape, criminal activities are heightened, but as Wandisile points out, “the more we get involved in these criminal activities, the more our communities suffer.”

The reason behind the exponential increase in gang culture following apartheid can be attributed to the fact that many young people feel frustrated and resentful and seek an outlet. Economic hardship, desire for a family unit, status and belonging, are also significant factors that contribute. However, as these are basic human sentiments, there are an additional set of conditions that could have an influence, such as the drug trade and the desensitisation of youth through glamourised popular culture and media coverage of gang activities. 

Read more about this culture in a previous volunteer, Scott Roder’s article on gang culture.

Gangsterism Today

Today, the South African Police Service is somewhat mistrusted by Capetonians, with certain officials having been linked to gangs in the past. Along with the government, they are not, according to Wandisile, “doing enough in terms of trying to solve or deal with the issues that are related to criminal activities within our community.”

Projects Abroad volunteers on a walking tour of the township, guided by Wandisile. Photo: Duran Petersen

Of particular concern is the ineffectiveness of the correctional system, which instead of rehabilitating, has been reinforcing gang culture.

This is especially apparent with the recognition of three prison gangs, referred to as the Numbers Gangs. These gangs, the 26s, 27s, and 28s, founded in Cape Town’s infamous Pollsmoor Prison, now extend to all of South Africa’s 236 operational prisons. According to ex-members, inmates must join one in order to survive, after which, they are subject to a strict code of conduct.

Two reformed gangsters who now work at 18 Gangster Museum have experienced such turmoil during their time behind bars, both having joined the Numbers Gangs. In fact, the number 18 in the museum’s name derives from the sum of 26, 27 and 28, which is 81. This number was then flipped to symbolise the ex-gang members turning their lives around.

Reform Through Education

Local homes on walking tour.

Although adult prisons are not meeting their aim of helping inmates to develop a sense of social responsibility, or discouraging them from committing further offences once they are released, there is definitely progress being made in youth centres.

“I don’t believe in curing. I believe we should try and prevent these things from happening in the first place.” – Wandisile Nqeketho

Wandisile recognises this potential for reform through educating youths to “pre-emptively mitigate gang affiliation,” stopping township teens from getting involved to begin with. When asked whether he thought prevention was better than a cure when it comes to dealing with gangsterism in Cape Town, he answered, “I don’t believe in curing. I believe we should try and prevent these things from happening in the first place.”

Exhibit showing the different paths a young boy, Thando, can take. This one leads to happiness, the path opposite shows the journey to a jail cell.

This sentiment is clear through his work at the museum, where he demonstrates to groups of youngsters the consequences of becoming affiliated and facilitates engaging activities, such as art classes and sports. Additionally, current installations show two paths which a young boy, Thando, can take: that of a gangster ending up imprisoned and dying “old, broken and alone”; or that of a young man who gets involved in the community, marries the love of his life and gains stable full-time employment.

Humble Beginnings

Wandisile started the inspirational initiative with two childhood friends, Siyabulela Daweti and Athenkosi Mongo after their experiences “growing up in a place where gangsterism was rife.”

These issues hit particularly close to home for Wandisile whose “father was a drug lord,” and “older brother was a big gangster, a very feared gangster. He was shot 14 times.” Outside of the family, his childhood football team was also hit hard by gangsterism, mentioning, “all but three of them went into gangs and four of them passed away in the process.” Remarkably, Wandisile never got involved with gangs himself.

As he got older, he realised the issue was that individuals were “blaming young people for acting delinquently without actually providing the necessary guidelines or mentoring young people, so that they could make the right choices.”

The Community’s Response

The community of Khayelitsha and its surrounds have been welcoming and appreciative of this initiative. “People are happy because there is someone who is doing something,” says Wandisile.

Wandisile speaking about local enterprises on the walking tour. Photo: Duran Petersen.

Surprisingly, “the reception has been positive” from current gang members too. In fact, Wandisile has received numerous calls from gangsters trying to help his visitors who “are lost and can’t locate the place”.

He elaborates saying, “what most of the gang members in these communities understand is that it’s the conditions that led them into gangs. They never wanted to become gangsters.”

He cites this understanding as the main reason for their support, but also because they have seen the consequences of getting involved first hand and, “do not want their sons to become gangsters. They do not want their brothers and sisters to be involved in gangster activities.”

“What most of the gang members in these communities understand is that it’s the conditions that led them into gangs. They never wanted to become gangsters.” – Wandisile Nqeketho

Ex-gang members share the same sentiments, which has made working with them particularly easy for 18 Gangster Museum, who have never had to actively recruit. One such ex-gang member, Sam, who is currently working at the museum, started at the museum “even though we did not have a place for him,” says Wandisile. When asked why he thought they would want to be involved Wandisile responded, “I think inherently people are seeking good in themselves and for the community. So whenever they see something that is good for the community they easily gravitate towards it.”

Geena Grant interviewing founder Wandisile Nqeketho with fellow intern Yuriko Yoshikawa.

A Stepping Stone

However, Wandisile recognises that it is “problematic” being celebrated if you are not actually making a difference. In the future, Wandisile would like to be able to implement methods to measure the impact of 18 Gangster Museum’s programmes to see if they are making a valuable difference.

The ultimate goal is “to build a state-of-the-art museum” to facilitate further outreach programmes. Although a considerable amount of money will be needed to fund such a venture, which has already cost R175 000 of personal savings with limited funding. Such finances would allow the museum to bring in “skilled individuals […] good content producers, good curators, good people who are able to create these programmes and measurable methods.”

In addition to this, intense research and academic work are also required “to do a sociological background (report) as to how gangs develop and function in these communities, to go into epigenetics to understand how these conditions can actually impact an embryo and a child being brought up.” At the moment, Wandisile is doing this himself, but he doesn’t have access to a lot of relevant research and must rely on university students to find certain information or papers for him. All in all, he believes 18 Gangster Museum has “covered a lot of ground,” but at the moment is simply “a stepping stone, a step forward.”

Is This the Solution?

While 18 Gangster Museum’s current charge is prevention through stopping the pull of gangsterism for youths in Cape Town, there are further speculations as to what needs to be done in the long term as a solution. Amongst these is the knowledgeable voice of Don Pinnock, award-winning author of ‘Gang Town’, which explores the Cape’s criminal side.

In an interview last year with News 24’s Avantika Seeth, Don said the solution, in a nutshell, was to “build youth resilience”. This would entail fixing the education system and economy, rethinking the correctional system, preventing pre- and postnatal epigenetic damage and facilitating alternate meaningful activities for young people to get involved in during their spare time. If we can successfully do so, then according to Wandisile “the next generation is actually going to have a better future to inherit, a better community to inherit,” and that is really all one can hope for.

Founder Wandisile Nqeketho with Geena Grant and fellow intern Yuriko Yoshikawa outside 18 Gangster Museum.

Want to Help Make a Difference?

If you support the exceptional work being done by Wandisile and his team at 18 Gangster Museum and want to make a donation to help them realise their dream of becoming a larger and more permanent state-of-the-art museum, then be sure to visit their website. On the site, you can make donations, learn more and book a variety of tours to experience this Khayelitsha-based initiative for yourself.

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