In our ‘In Context’ series, we lift the lid on Weskus Distrik’s head of Disaster and Emergency Services Franquin Petersen
Franquin, your first job?
My first paid job was as a Lance Corporal in the Airforce. My base was Potchefstroom.
Do anything special with your first salary?
I remember flying down from AFB Potchefstroom to AFB Ysterplaat on a Sunday. I had my blue uniform on and handed my salary to my Mom.
Looking back to those days, what do you wish somebody had told you?
That it was okay to feel lost, that not having a map doesn’t mean you’re not going somewhere meaningful. Coming from a broken home, moving around often, and growing up without consistent role models, it sometimes felt like survival was the only option. Our mother carried more than her share, and we, as kids, had to figure out the rest. What I’ve come to realise is that strength doesn’t always roar or make a noise — sometimes, it whispers, ‘just one more step.’ Moreover, I wish someone had told me that scars don’t disqualify a person — they prepare you. And my background doesn’t define my limits but only my beginning. Despite the uncertainty, I pushed through, earned a few degrees, and am now pursuing a PhD. I didn’t just survive – I grew. And I would tell my younger self: ‘I am going to be more than okay’.
What book had the most profound effect on you? Why?
Without question – the Bible. Growing up through hardship, uncertainty, and the absence of steady role models, it became more than just a book to me. It was a foundation. The words in it offered hope when life felt unstable, direction when there was none, and a sense of identity when I wasn’t sure who I was becoming.
Verses like Jeremiah 29:11 reminded me there was a purpose to the struggle. Proverbs taught me wisdom. The Gospels taught me grace. It shaped not just how I see the world, but how I choose to live — with faith, resilience, and a desire to serve others. It didn’t change my circumstances overnight, but it transformed how I responded to them. And that made all the difference. Am I perfect? Not at all – I am reminded daily of Grace and getting up every day when I fall.
If you could give hope to South Africans by fixing one thing, what would it be?
It would be to restore trust – trust in leadership, in public systems, and in each other. Because when people lose trust, they lose hope. And without hope, it’s hard to build, to dream, or to rise above circumstances.
We can have policies, plans, and infrastructure, but if people don’t believe they matter or that their voices count, none of it lasts. Rebuilding trust would mean accountable leadership, visible service delivery, ethical governance, and a return to dignity in how we treat our communities. That shift alone would unlock the resilience, creativity, and unity that already lives in South Africans – it just needs to be reawakened.
Chicken or beef? Weskus or West Coast?
Lol, Ek is moeg van hoender, maar is lekker – so vir nou Beef. Ek is n Weskus klong, so dit sal wees Weskus.
