Limpopo is the home of the true volunteers of our national liberation movement. We are the home of the ANC.

Over the weekend the Provincial Task Team of the ANC in Limpopo officially launched its election brigade named after one of our most outstanding volunteer of our national liberation movement, President Sefako Makgatho. We are inspired by the decision of our provincial leadership to have named our brigade after this finest son of our soil, who is also one of the founding fathers of our national liberation movement.

President Sefako Makgatho was one of the most distinguished volunteers of our movement who occupied the forefront of our trenches to lead the struggles of our people against imperialism and colonial oppression and exploitation. His was a calibre of an exemplary leadership that taught our people the notion that to be a volunteer is the highest form of generosity.

The structures of the ANC throughout the province are assembling dedicated core of volunteers of men and women across the spectra of our society. The main focus is to marshal our forces and the people of our province towards the overwhelming victory of the ANC in the forthcoming national general elections. 

Our core of volunteers throughout the country is comprised of the most distinguished leaders of our people. It is constituted of the most disciplined, committed, selfless, exemplary and the true representatives of our people. We have assembled a core of volunteers with outstanding capabilities to connect with the masses of our people.

The 1994 democratic breakthrough ushered in the end and the beginning of a new era of our struggles for socio economic transformation of our society. Therefore we need the calibre of the volunteers of a special type, who will take forward the new forms of our struggles for the total emancipation of our people.

Our national liberation movement remains to be the only relevant political formation capable of leading the struggles for the socio economic transformation of our society. There is no any other political formation in our country capable of leading the struggles of our people into the future, rather than the ANC. 

It is therefore important that the core of our volunteers is constituted of the most advanced elements capable of giving a critical analysis of the balance of forces throughout the times. We need a core of volunteers who will first and foremost understand that, we are consolidating the gains of our national democratic revolution in the mist of the most complex and hostile domestic and international terrain of our struggles. 

Our volunteers must grapple with the realities that the balance of forces in the whole world is not in favour of the progressive movement. In our own country the coalition of domestic and international counter revolutionary forces opposed to the transformation of our society, is working around the clock to reverse the tremendous achievements of our national democratic revolution. 

In our province counter revolutionary tendencies nearly collapsed both the infrastructure of the ANC structures and our provincial administration. The structures of our movement were marred by unprecedented levels of divisions amongst its rank to a point that our national leadership was left with no option but to disband the provincial executive committee.

For the first time in our history since the democratic breakthrough, our provincial administration was virtually at the verge of collapse. Counter revolutionary elements were involved in unscrupulous corruptive activities of looting state resources for their own selfish interest. This prompted the collective leadership of our movement and our democratic government to place some of the provincial departments under administration.

It was evident that counter revolution was determined to hamper the delivery of essential basic services to the poor people of our province. Our people were therefore encouraged by the decisive interventions by the collective leadership of the President of the ANC and our republic Cde Jacob Zuma, of disbanding the provincial executive committee and to put some of the departments of our provincial government under administration. 

For these reasons it is therefore important that we all support the collective leadership of our Provincial Task Team. We are all duty bound to give the new leadership the necessary support they require to rebuild the ANC in the province.

Our volunteers should therefore understand that it is only through the unity and cohesion of our revolutionary forces and the people of our province, that we can achieve an overwhelming victory of the ANC in the forthcoming national general elections.

Those who seek to undermine the collective work of our Provincial Task Team and therefore our fundamental principle of democratic centralism and inner party democracy, are defining themselves outside the ranks of our movement. Our movement can only make those who are from within happy before it can attract others. Being from within is about becoming a custodians of the true values, culture and traditions of our movement.

The principle of democratic centralism and inner party democracy is the foundation upon which we can forge unity and cohesion through collective leadership. Once leadership is elected through organisational processes of inner party democracy, ours is nothing else but to embrace and give our unequivocal support. 

Our theoretical understanding of the fundamental principle of unity and cohesion is not necessarily about our mother approach. The scientific revolutionary theory of our movement teaches us that there is no unity and cohesion at all cost. There is only unity of purpose.

Therefore those who are hellbent to undermine this basic fundamental principle of democratic centralism and organisational discipline do not share this purpose. In essence they have declared themselves to be the enemies of our revolution.

The enemy that has denied the people of our province the services they deserved is now appearing in a new form. It has an abstract understanding of the leadership question. It has a short memory believing that to be elected into position of leadership is a hereditary responsibility.

Our national democratic revolution, our country and our future cannot be led by the unled. Infantile disorder or wreckless adventurism by its inherent characteristic cannot lead a revolutionary project for construction of a non racial, non sexist, democratic and prosperous society. 

We are making a glaring call to our people not to be confused by these reactionary and counter revolutionary forces. During the day they are sherpards and during the night they are jackals. Our volunteers must explain to our people about the role of the enemy from within.

The only way our volunteers can defeat these corrupt nest of counter revolutionaries is to follow the exemplary and selfless leadership of the calibre of Vuyisile Mini, Flag Boshielo, Moses Kotane, Oliver Tambo, Peter Nchabeleng, Lawrance Phokanoka, Tito Manthatha, Peter Mokaba, Ephraim Mogale, Solomon Mahlangu, and many of our countless heroes and heroines of our struggles who volunteered their lifes for the freedom and dignity of our people. 

Our struggle heroes have always taught us that to be a volunteer is not a privilege but an opportunity to learn. Volunteers are those amongst our best who understand that leadership is a responsibility given by the people. Therefore our task is to serve our people. Volunteerism is the highest expression of human solidarity and generosity. 

Limpopo is the home of the ANC. We have assembled the most dedicated core of volunteers who will resemble the best image of the true representatives of our people. Leadership is an opportunity to bring our people together for reconstruction and development. 

Limpopo is the home of the ANC

Phatse Justice Piitso is the former Ambassador to the republic of Cuba and the former provincial secretary of the SACP writing this article on his personal capacity.

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