Rayner Thobile Ndabambi
A South African military veteran, who was born on 19 April 1967 at Mount Fletcher, Drakensberg in the Eastern Cape. Rayner served in the Transkei Defence Force for seven years, from 1988 to 1995, before joining the South African Defence Force as one of the first instructors to train women in the SANDF in democratic South Africa following the elections.
Early life
Rayner began his Grade 1 education in 1974 at Ramafole Junior Secondary School in Drakensberg. In 1980, he relocated to Mthatha to continue his studies at Ncambela Junior Secondary School, where he attended from 1980 to 1983. He then enrolled at Mthatha Technical College in 1988 but dropped out to join the Transkei Defence Force on 19 July of the same year, starting his training for nine months on August 1, 1988.
Personal life
Rayner Ndabambi is a soldier who served during the apartheid regime and continued his military career after the democratic elections in South Africa in 1995. He is currently the chairperson of the South African Transkei Bophuthatswana Venda and Ciskei (SATBVC), where he assists military veterans in obtaining funds that were withheld from them during the transition to a new government with the appointment of the first black president. In addition to his advocacy work, he owns a small business focused on pig farming.
Career
Rayner Ndabambi joined the Transkei Defence Force on August 1, 1988, where he underwent training for the first nine months. He continued to serve until the establishment of a new democratic South Africa following the African National Congress winning the elections and becoming the ruling party. Notably, on January 9, 1995, he became one of the first instructors for the South African National Defence Force to train women after the end of the apartheid regime.
Rayner left and did not complete training women in the middle of 1995 and he was transferred to Heidelberg in Gauteng. He continued to serve the SANDF but in a different department, and he was in the Army gym in Heidelberg, from transport to logistics, and he left the military on 31 December 1998.
He started a small business selling sand and firewood in his community. In 2003, he obtained his code 14 driver’s license and became a long-distance truck driver for a company called Value, where he worked from 2005 to early 2006. After that, he joined another company, Anderson, from early 2006 to mid-2008. In 2008, he found employment at Zenergetex as a driver and stayed there until December 2009.
After leaving Zenergetex, he became an owner-driver at SAB Breweries from January 2010 to December 2010. Following his time as a truck driver, Rayner ventured into entrepreneurship and owned a restaurant, a tavern, and tuck shops from 2011 to 2019. In 2019, he decided to transition into pig farming.
Activism:
Rayner Ndabambi served as a soldier in the Transkei Defence Force during the apartheid regime. After the end of apartheid and the establishment of the new democratic system, he joined the South African National Defence Force. He continues to serve his country with distinction as the chairperson of SATBVC, where he advocates for veterans who have not received their rightful benefits as former military officers who dedicated their service to the nation.
Rayner Thobile Ndabambi
Born: 19 April 1967
Spouse: Divorced
Children: Xhantilomzi Ndabambi, Qaqambile Masana, Qayiya Ndabambi
Currently: Eastern Cape, Mthatha
Early life
Rayner began his Grade 1 education in 1974 at Ramafole Junior Secondary School in Drakensberg. In 1980, he relocated to Mthatha to continue his studies at Ncambela Junior Secondary School, where he attended from 1980 to 1983. He then enrolled at Mthatha Technical College in 1988 but dropped out to join the Transkei Defence Force on 19 July of the same year, starting his training for nine months on August 1, 1988.
Personal life
Rayner Ndabambi is a soldier who served during the apartheid regime and continued his military career after the democratic elections in South Africa in 1995. He is currently the chairperson of the South African Transkei Bophuthatswana Venda and Ciskei (SATBVC), where he assists military veterans in obtaining funds that were withheld from them during the transition to a new government with the appointment of the first black president. In addition to his advocacy work, he owns a small business focused on pig farming.
Career
Rayner Ndabambi joined the Transkei Defence Force on August 1, 1988, where he underwent training for the first nine months. He continued to serve until the establishment of a new democratic South Africa following the African National Congress winning the elections and becoming the ruling party. Notably, on January 9, 1995, he became one of the first instructors for the South African National Defence Force to train women after the end of the apartheid regime.
Rayner left and did not complete training women in the middle of 1995 and he was transferred to Heidelberg in Gauteng. He continued to serve the SANDF but in a different department, and he was in the Army gym in Heidelberg, from transport to logistics, and he left the military on 31 December 1998.
He started a small business selling sand and firewood in his community. In 2003, he obtained his code 14 driver’s license and became a long-distance truck driver for a company called Value, where he worked from 2005 to early 2006. After that, he joined another company, Anderson, from early 2006 to mid-2008. In 2008, he found employment at Zenergetex as a driver and stayed there until December 2009.
After leaving Zenergetex, he became an owner-driver at SAB Breweries from January 2010 to December 2010. Following his time as a truck driver, Rayner ventured into entrepreneurship and owned a restaurant, a tavern, and tuck shops from 2011 to 2019. In 2019, he decided to transition into pig farming.
Activism:
Rayner Ndabambi served as a soldier in the Transkei Defence Force during the apartheid regime. After the end of apartheid and the establishment of the new democratic system, he joined the South African National Defence Force. He continues to serve his country with distinction as the chairperson of SATBVC, where he advocates for veterans who have not received their rightful benefits as former military officers who dedicated their service to the nation.
