STATEMENT OF MKMVA ON THE FORMATION OF THE NEW POLITICAL PARTY BY DISGRUNTLED FORMER MEMBERS OF UMKHONTO WE SIZWE
Umkhonto we Sizwe was disbanded on the 16th December 1993 at Orlando Stadium. An association, MKMVA was subsequently established to advance the social welfare needs and guide the political mainstreaming of former combatants within the political influence and constitutional prescripts of the African National Congress.
The 52nd and 53rd National Conferences of the ANC held in Polokwane and Mangaung respectively in 2007 and 2012, affirmed MKMVA as the legitimate voice of the ex-combatants within the ANC. This was done considering that MK existed as the armed wing of the ANC guided by the politics and principles of the ANC.
Therefore, Eddie Mokhoanatse and his fellow travellers, have no right to associate the creation of his power hungry imagination, with former combatants of the glorious peoples' army, Umkhonto we Sizwe.
It is important to note that Eddie Mokhoanatse aka Alex Mashinini, deserted the ANC in the eighties. While he was deployed in the German Democratic Republic, he skipped to the Federal Republic of Germany attracted by the shine of good life and bright life, while the rest of the comrades stood firm in their posts.
Upon his return to South Africa, MKMVA tried to embrace him in its structures, with the understanding that he might not have had the backbone to withstand the rigors of tough life as an ANC activist in exile.
However, over the weekend, Eddie Mokhoanatse and some of his few disgruntled former members of Umkhonto we Sizwe, announced the formation of a political party called South Africa First (see here). The leadership and the general membership of the MKMVA take this opportunity to distance itself from the formation of this so called political party.
There is no other political movement we know other than the African National Congress of our first Commander in Chief President Nelson Mandela. Members of the MKMVA are the children of the ANC. We were born and we will die in the ANC. Even if we reach heaven after death, on arrival the first question we will ask is where to join our glorious movement. The movement of Oliver Tambo, Vuyisile Mini, Chris Hani, Gavon Mbeki, Walter Sisulu, Lawrence Phokanoka, Mark Shope, Moses Mabhida, Solomon Mahlangu, and many other heroes and heroines of our struggles.
The formation of the so called political party is part of the continued attempts by the enemy of our revolution and our people to undermine the collective efforts of our liberation struggles. It is the wider strategy of the Democratic Alliance and the international monopoly capital, to use agents provocateurs such as these ones who use their fake credentials to rewrite the history of liberation struggles of our country.
One of the most important question we need to grapple with in the current phase of our transition from apartheid racist rule to our democratic dispensation is the role of the enemy of our revolution. Our movement has thoroughly prepared us to understand the role of the enemy of our revolution at any particular given moment.
Our task at all times is to analyse the conditions under which we find ourselves. We are aware that the role of the enemy cannot be understood in isolation from the unfolding events in the world. There is a growing trend throughout the world to undermine national liberation movements. We understand that this is an ideological battle as to how we want to build a better world for humanity.
The enemy of our revolution has increasingly mounted a campaign to sponsor formation of the so called splinter groups led by former members of our liberation movement. The strategy is to decorate the authenticity and political authority of such formations so that they can instigate our people against our liberation movement. The enemy is using such dirty tricks to undermine the unity and the cohesion of our movement and therefore our people.
The formation of this new political party is a living testimony that counter revolution is determined to undermine the collective effort of our people to build their own future. The enemy is hard at work to reverse back the hard won freedom and dignity of our people. The enemy is using prodigal sons of our movement such as these ones to return our country back to apartheid rule.
There have been many attempts by the enemy forces throughout the history of our liberation to divide our revolutionary movement. Therefore the launch of this political party is yet another attempt by the enemy to bring divisions within the ranks of our members.
We accept the fact that our constitution gives access to our citizens to belong to any political party of their choice. However the attempts to destroy the ANC and its revolutionary Alliance have failed on a number of occasions. The enemy has always failed to form a formidable opposition group in our country because in most instances, the ambitions to form political parties is not premised on political differences or ideology but rather from personal grievances and personality cult.
Most of them who want to form a splinter group are those who failed at our last congress to take the leadership of the MKMVA. Today they want to parade with fake credentials to betray the cause of the struggles of our people. We are not shaken by the opportunistic tendencies by these agent provocateurs who want to reverse the tremendous achievements of our national democratic revolution.
They have distinguished themselves to be the best representatives of counter revolution. The enemy has intoxicated them with the taste of a nectar of power, they have been intoxicated to sell our revolution to the highest bidder. They have sold the souls and the future prospects of our people. They have chosen to betray the cause of our revolution.
Members of Umkhonto we Sizwe are the most extraordinary loyal and disciplined members of our national liberation movement. We have taken an oath that we will never betray the cause of the struggles of our people. We are indeed the first to take the line of march in defense of the unity of our movement and the collective struggles of our people.
We have taken an oath that we shall forever remain true to the traditions and culture of our movement. Our movement has taught us to be the most courageous leaders of our society. We have been there to defend the unity of our movement and our people. We will be there today and tomorrow. We are the soldiers of Umkhonto we Sizwe, we will be there in the forefront trenches to defend our movement and our future.
There is no other political party; there is no group of agent provocateurs with the capacity to stand against our forward march to liberate our people from the painful past imposed by the acrimonious and vicious apartheid racist regime. We are not astonished or shaken by the counter revolutionary and shameful pronouncement by these prodigal sons of our movement.
We are aware that most of the lies they are spreading is that the government led by the ANC is not looking after the welfare of the former combatants of our liberations army. The Polokwane conference took a decision to instruct the government of the ANC to dedicate a department that will specifically look into the interests and the general welfare of our members. We report that there is lot of progress in this regard done by the Department of the military Veterans to improve the living conditions of our members; thou much has to be done.
We will continue to work for the unity of the ANC and our revolutionary Alliance. There is no any other party with the capacity to take forward the struggles for the socio economic transformation of our country rather than the ANC. Our movement has never betrayed the aspirations and the wishes of our people.
From the first day this group of agent provocateurs were never genuine members of our movement. Their brief has been to infiltrate and destroy the ANC and the struggles for our liberation. They have failed and they will fail today and tomorrow.
The ANC is like the river Nile, it has the capacity to cleanse itself. They are exposed because they betrayed the oath that they took as members of Umkhonto we Sizwe; that they will die for the ultimate cause of our struggles. We are ready to advance, defend and consolidate the hard won freedom and victories of struggles by our people.
Statement issued by Kebby Maphatsoe, National Chairperson, MKMVA HQ, April 30 2013
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