A second-year student in the Financial Accounting Department at the Durban University of Technology was the cynosure of all eyes when Coca Cola presented her with a brand new Geely LC Cross GL this afternoon (Friday, August 2, 2013).

Bukeka Madikizela, a 23-year-old student from Bizana, Eastern Cape, is the lucky winner of the student competition which was run by Coca Cola in higher education institutions around Durban and Gauteng between April and June this year.

Her vehicle was handed over to her at DUT’s ML Sultan Campus, next to the cafeteria in a public ceremony attended by her family, friends and DUT students.

A euphoric Madikizela said, “I never miss an opportunity to enter competitions. You never know when luck might just strike.” It was a similar case with the Coca Cola competition; the student was merely “trying her luck” and, as it seems, fortune was indeed on her side.

“I honestly did not expect to win this competition. I was so shocked when I received a call from Coca Cola. I even thought it was a prank,” she recalled, adding that she is eternally grateful to the Lord for this “blessing”. Madikizela was with her eldest sister when the good news came. Naturally, the pair then conveyed the message to their family before the student told her friends.

To be entered into the competition draw, a student had to first buy any Coca Cola product in order to receive an entry card with a hidden unique code. After scratching and revealing the code, the student was then required to SMS it to a specified number. Apart from the grand prize, there were weekly R2 000 cash prizes to be won as well. Determined to increase her chances of winning, Madikizela said she SMSed five unique codes. The final draw was held by a private company on June 17, 2013.

Sabelo Dlepu, the Brand Developer for Amalgamated Beverage Industries (ABI) which is a business partner of Coca Cola, said the reason behind running this competition was two-fold. Firstly, it was to increase and maintain brand awareness and secondly, to “give back to students” who are the main consumers of the brand’s products within the targeted institutions.

Dlepu added that by publicising the handover of Madikizela’s vehicle, ABI sought to eliminate the common misconception that, when running competitions, companies never give away the grand prize.

– Naledi Hlefane

Pictured: A ecstatic Bukeka Madikizela poses for pictures with her family members and representatives from Amalgamated Beverage Industries (ABI). From left: Lindelwa Madikizela (sister), Bongiwe Madikizela (mother), Bukeka Madikizela, Sabelo Dlepu ABI Brand Developer; Vuyokazi Madikizela (sister); Rosalind Sukhan ABI National Account Manager: Education and Mxolisi Ngcobo ABI Merchandiser Order Taker.