The way I look at it is that, I should not choose a leader for the sake of choosing a leader. It's only after participating in Tshwane Youth leadership nomination process, that, I realized the nomination process can be improved and can be better handled.

While I was wondering what is it that Cope can do to have a process that will at the end make Cope stronger after conferences than it was before conferences, I opened my face book messages and found a message from Hlomla Dandala with a comment from Sentletse that clearly answered my questions.

Who must we put for treasurer? Eerr, Sefu is not in the list, so let's put him there. This process if flawed, we need to change it especially for the national conference. We need to scrutinize our process and make sure that, they are not pro-personalities, but they are pro- COPE.

So, where can we put Sentletse, lets put him on the national list as an additional, he is a nice guy. It's amazing. This process can never be a process of electing leaders, is a process of filling up portfolios.

I fully agree with the approach of electing only the TOP 5 and additionals, then people can be properly scrutinized and placed according to their competency.

And to be totally democratic, I will agree with Hlomla that, we have a process for all COPE members to be able to VOTE. Why not?

Lets break with traditions from our cousins and take Sentletse's advice, people must avail themselves for positions and be taken through a public assessment process where they are exposed to Cope membership and are allowed to tell us, what is it that they will do to ensure that Cope excels in their chosen portfolio.

This will uncover hidden talent and it will broaden cope membership leadership options, saving them from the usual suspects.

While this process sounds good and progressive, we also need to outline as to what is it that makes Cope tick, and what are the pillars that are holding COPE together.

When we choose leaders, we must first think of COPE's long term survival and ability to get into government. We must not fall in the trap of theoretical rambles and rather assess the reality of the South African electorate and Cope membership. Whenever we think of who can take COPE further, who can take COPE into governance? We need to first think of how our electorate not membership think and perceive things.

We must be able to say, Sefu is good with dancing, but unlike Zuma, he does not connect to people in the rural areas and in the townships. Sefu is not known at all in the rural areas across the country. So, the fact that he can dance well, does not equate to his popularity among the people of South Africa.

This is the one aspect that we can never run away from, in our choice of leadership; we can never be able to ignore the needs of the majority of South Africans.

Well Sefu had shown extraordinary skills of leadership that can make him a hero of the people within months, maybe we can consider him, but if Sefu has not shown to be better than every leader, then maybe Sefu must shelf his ambitions.

There are certain leadership choices that will cause confusion amongst our voter community and further cause doubt in the minds of the people as to whether cope is indeed a force to be reckoned with.

We need to look out for these dangers and not be seduced into gambling with our organization to impress individual's egos or to protect our personal interests. We must unlike our cousins not be prepared to kill for an individual, because that individual can as well be killed.

We need a disciplined mined when coming to leadership choices, this processes are the building blocks of Cope's personality, people build their image of Cope based on this processes.

We must be a party of Gratitude not arrogance. We need to appreciate and not dismiss. We must not be known as heartless backstabbers that careless about humanity, but consumed with power.

South Africans are crying for a political party that portrays an honest and trust worthy attitude, a humble movement.

A leadership choice is not about leaders, it's about building the Organization's image in the minds of electorates. We are not in the business of electing leaders, we are in the business of giving our people hope, providingng an alternative government that will listen to them, respect them and make their lives better.

Leaders will come and go. COPE will remain. Leaders will be born and leaders will DIE, COPE will remain.

Sefu Sekgala is the democratically elected chairperson of COPE Himilton branch (Pretoria Central)

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