Madiba, an ANC product that belongs to all

UTat' uNelson Mandela emerged as a leader of our nation and a global icon of resistance and peaceful transition on the strength of his leadership capabilities within the ranks of the African National Congress. He and the ANC are one. He shaped the ANC and in-turn it shaped him. His legacy continues to live in the ANC and will remain with us for centuries to come. No one can tell the story of one without mentioning the other.

Addressing the same question, the Vietnamese revolutionary intellectual, Le Duan says, "There is dialectical interrelationship between cadres and the revolutionary movement of the masses. A cadre's life is lived within a framework of multifaceted relationships. It is these relationships, which makes a cadre, a cadre. In this relationship, a cadre is at the same time cause and effect. Conversely a cadre is at the same time effect and cause. A Cadre cannot be conceived outside of an organization, for a Cadre is an element of an organization".

The attempt by those who deliberately and out of sheer ignorance or arrogance refuse to accept where Madiba comes from will always grope in the dark hoping to find a better definition. The assertion by the leader of the Democratic Alliance (DA), Helen Zille and later on joined by Dr Mamphele Ramphele that Madiba belongs to all is indeed correct. However, there should be no attempt to remove him from his roots, the African National Congress.

Throughout the period since its formation in 1912, the ANC has demonstrated an exceptional ability to produce leaders of note that go on to play a prominent role in society. Madiba comes from a long line of great leaders in the ANC. Amongst others, we can name the following, Langalibalele Dube, Sol Plaatjie, Pixley Ka Isaka Seme, Sefako Makgotho, Josiah Gumede, Charlotte Maxeke, Alfred Xuma, Inkosi Albert Luthuli, Moses Kotane, Moses Mabhida, JB Marks, Yusuf Dadoo, Joe Slovo, Walter Sisulu and OR Tambo to mention just a few. This is our contribution to society, and we will continue to make this contribution.

In an article that appeared in the Sunday Times of 29 May 2011, Dr. Mamphele Ramphele, a distinguished academic with impeccable credentials makes several comments regarding the legacy of uTata Nelson Mandela which are incorrect.

First she says, "... He worked tirelessly to project himself as such, going to the extent of reaching out to those who opposed the political settlement he championed. Mandela can't be appropriated by any sector of our population".

Her assertions makes Nelson Mandela to be a person that just emerged out of nowhere, with no associates, no comrades, no history and no organisation at all. This is wholly incorrect. He belonged and continues to belong to a movement called the African National Congress. On several occasions he consistently reminded us and emphasised the point that he belonged to this organisation. To demonstrate the point, we will let Mandela speak for himself.

In his response to the offer made by the then apartheid State President of conditional release, he said "I am a member of the African National Congress. I have always been a member of the African National Congress and I will remain a member of the African National Congress until the day I die".

Referring to his association with the then President of the African National Congress, his comrade, his friend. He said the following words; "Oliver Tambo is much more than a brother to me. He is my greatest friend and comrade for nearly fifty years. If there is any one amongst you who cherishes my freedom, Oliver Tambo cherishes it more, and I know that he would give his life to see me free. There is no difference between his views and mine". (1985 Mandela).

President Tambo, a person characterised by the South African apartheid government, by some in the press and our "modern champions of democracy" as a terrorist and communist until his death. However, our people viewed him as a leader who indeed gave up his life for our freedom.

Paying tribute to his longtime friend, comrade and fellow prisoner Walter Sisulu, Madiba said, "I now know that when my time comes, Walter will be there to meet me, and I am almost certain he will hold out an enrolment form to register me into the ANC in that world, cajoling me with one of his favourite songs we sang when mobilizing people behind the Freedom Charter'.

While others will employ trickery as part of their strategy, a tactic employed by the colonisers. In the most trying times of his life, Madiba has never tricked people. He has always been upfront with people and always explaining the challenges we are face and the difficulties we might encounter along the way. These are the traditions of the African National Congress, traditions that Madiba and his generation inherited from their predecessors and in return they bequeathed those norms and values to us. Not trickery.

Second, Dr Mamphele Ramphele says "Mandela was not just the president of the ANC, but also the president of South Africa. His legacy belongs to the state, which is bigger than any party, including the ruling party".

On this Madiba says, "I would be nothing without the ANC. The struggle has been my life and the ANC led that struggle... I thank the ANC for having given meaning to my 90 years on this planet, in this country we all love dearly".

Third, on the International front the good Doctor says about the former President, "Mandela is an international icon. He belongs to Africa and the world as a leader who came to be embraced by all as a transformative figure in world history".

The ANC was formed and it evolved as part of progressive forces across the globe in the fight against colonialism, racism, poverty, underdevelopment and gender oppression. It drank and continues to drink from the well of these progressive global experiences. Madiba is our contribution to the world.

In the same article, Dr. Ramphele, says this about Helen Suzman, "Suzman devoted her life to fighting for the rights of people, regardless of political affiliation. Many of the long-term political prisoners who were treated inhumanely in prisons, including Mandela, had her as their champion".

This reminded me of what Comrade Jeremy Cronin said in Parliament in early 2009 during the debate on the President's State of the Nation Address which was never contested. Comrade Cronin said, "Comrade President, you spoke generously about the late Helen Suzman, and I think that was appropriate. You said she represented the values of this Parliament in the Chambers of the previous Parliament. I think that was a generous comment, but an appropriate one to an outstanding South African. We have no doubt about that. But Helen Suzman was also honest, and she wouldn't want us to be dishonest about what she stood for. The party she represented in the previous Chambers of the previous Parliament believed that the majority of South Africans were not yet ready for the vote, which is why they argued for a qualified franchise."

On the developments in the North Africa and the Middle East, the distinguished academic says, "The civil rebellion in the Middle East and North Africa is a result of the failure of governments towards their citizens, to whom they are accountable. Over many years, citizens in that region were treated as subjects given hand-outs without any engagement with their views on broader policy questions and performance of government. Subjects may take long to revolt, but eventually they do, as the uprisings there have demonstrated".

In our efforts to strengthen communication and encouraging meaningful community participation in their own development and in being active part of solutions in the matters that affects, the ANC led government developed what became known as Imbizo Programme. This programme was launched to intensified contact between citizens and their government.

Imbizo is about unmediated communication between government and its people. It is a forum for enhancing dialogue and interaction between senior government executives and ordinary people. It provides an opportunity for government to communicate its action programme and progress directly to the people. Imbizo also promotes participation of the public in the programmes to improve their lives.

Interaction through Imbizo highlights particular problems needing attention, blockages in implementation of policy, or policy areas that may need review. It draws public input into how best to tackle challenges. It gives the President and others direct access to what people say and feel about government and service delivery, to listen to their concerns, their grievances and advice about the pace and direction of government's work. This encourages all South Africans to become conscious and active participants in the social transformation process.

If the good doctor had cared to do a bit more research in terms of conditions that existed in those countries before the uprisings, she would have noticed the vast differences that exist between our country and those countries

The foundation stone and principles at the heart and soul of South Africa's constitution derives from the ANC's unshakeable commitment to the Freedom Charter, democratic rule and the constitution being the supreme law of the land that guarantees human rights and dignity, non-racialism, gender equality and the unity of our people.

Last word from former President Nelson Rolihlahla Mandela in December 1997, "I must not be isolated from the collective who are responsible for the success... The ANC is the greatest achievement of the twentieth century.

>> Nathi Mthethwa is an ANC NEC member and Minister of Police. This article first appeared in ANC Today, the weekly online newsletter of the African National Congress.

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