South African work visa--in a tricky situation help please

Hi everyone, here's my situation

1. I already have a job offer from a prominent company in South Africa
2. But my employer has told to arrange for the visa myself; i.e. no help from employer, which means I can't apply for General Work permit (as it requires considerable work on employer's side)
3. So I am left with Quota Work permit option only, right? But the requirements for this type of visa include a minimum 5 years of experience in that field, BUT I just have 2.5 years of full time experience. BUT I already have a valid job contract.., so what should I do?

I mean to ask how rigid is this minimum 5 years experience requirement?

I can prove some internships/part time jobs in my field while I was studying, and this experience is well over 5 years (I started working as a coder in 3rd semester, so I have about 3 years of part time experience as well) Does it count?

Your ideas will be very helpful, thanks!