Whilst the official attendance figures are still being tallied, organisers of this year’s VOC Festival believe the event was a massive success. The festival, which concluded on Sunday, saw the local community come out in their numbers to enjoy a range of entertainment, sporting tournaments, food stalls, and shopping.

Festival convener Hajierah Isaacs said the most positive aspect were that festival-goers and staff alike enjoyed themselves, and that the event went by incident free. The festival’s success was in large parts thanks to the security and medical services present at the stadium throughout the event.

“That is the good news, and we cannot stop thanking everybody. We are going to do an injustice if we mention names, because there are so many that contributed to the success of this festival,” she said.

Whilst the organisers have been inundated with positive feedback, Isaacs said they would be looking to address any criticism they received, in the hope of building and improving for the next festival. Those harbouring any complaints need simply submit them via email to info@vocfm.co.za, clearly stating that the complaint is festival related.

“We take it as constructive criticism that can only but take us forward in a positive manner. It’s the only way you will learn where you have gone wrong, and how we you improve,” she said.

She noted that each aspect of the festival drew its own support, from sporting codes on the field to entertainment on the main stage and in the Tea Garden.

“The amount of people that attended the thikr on Thursday night was a highlight. When you look at the support for the ulema soccer on Friday evening, that was a highlight. All the events that happened on Saturday, that was also a highlight on its own. We cannot say anything was a specific highlight, because each event drew its own supporters,” she explained. VOC (Mubeen Banderker)