Mamphela Ramphele, Leader of Agang SA, Agang SA Brand Launch, November 16 2013
We don't have time to wait for 2018. Now is the time to act
Aaa! Dumelang! Sanibonani! Molweni! Axusheni! Ndi macheloni! Ngiyanibingelela! Goeie dag! Good morning! God be with you! Salaam alaikum! Namaste! Shalom! Welcome in the ancestors and elders!
Fellow citizens. Never before have we been faced with a more important opportunity than now.
The 2014 election is an opportunity for you to raise your voices and say NO to the way in which the ANC is shamefully running this country. The ANC has and is betraying the promise of freedom.
It is an opportunity for 5 million eligible first-time voters to exercise their civic right to have their voices heard. This is the first time young people are the majority and they can and must shape a future they can be proud of.
It is an opportunity for the 13 million people who were so disillusioned that they failed to cast their vote in the last elections.
Do the right thing. Exercise your sacred duty and responsibility to make sure our country is in a fit state to hand over to the next generation.
And to all you disillusioned voters who have become sickened by the state of our nation, Agang SA is your new home.
We are a party that belongs to all people in South Africa - every single one of us that wants to join our renewed struggle for freedom.
We say our name in all official languages to demonstrate that we do not favour one culture over another.
AGANG I AKHANI I AKANI I AHANG I PFATANI I BOU I BUILD
We call ourselves ‘Agang' because we believe we can build a better South Africa.
IT IS POSSIBLE.
Fellow citizens, we must never give up our task of restoring the promise of freedom.
We did not fight and die in the struggle for freedom, so that millions of people should feel hopeless and disempowered.
We were born with imagination and the human dignity to strive for the best our country can offer and we should use them.
We need to IMAGINE a better future where everyone will have a job, a decent home, education that nurtures the talent of every child and healthcare for all - and feel safe to walk on the streets.
We need to IMAGINE that we can have clean government that is a servant of the people; a government of the people, by the people, for the people.
IT IS POSSIBLE.
But it is only possible if we all become active citizens and cast our votes in the 2014 elections.
Don't lets fool ourselves that we have time to have another shot to organise opposition to topple the ANC in 2019.
By 2019, it will be too late. Five more years will give the ANC a chance to destroy more institutions of democracy and to abuse our resources in corrupt deals.
Citizens, we have to act NOW.
We need to organise our opposition to the ANC NOW. In every village, every town and every suburb of every city.
We need to raise our voices and shout ENOUGH is ENOUGH!
We need to let our voices swell with pride and reclaim our dignity and freedom for the next generation.
The ANC does not take you or me seriously, because they are so busy taking themselves seriously - enriching themselves at our expense - that they have forgotten us, the people of South Africa.
Many years ago at Kliptown, we imagined a South Africa that would be governed by the people for the people, a clarion call that marked the official start of our struggle.
It is an absolute disgrace that 20 years after the miraculous birth of our new democracy, almost half of our nation should live in dire poverty - below the breadline - while the ANC elite are billionaires.
Where is the hope, dignity and equality promised to us in our excellent constitution that was drafted with such pride and became a model constitution for the world to emulate?
The ANC promised us hope dignity and equality in 1994, and they have failed the majority of citizens.
No wonder many feel like forgotten people and refuse to vote, unless they are bullied to do so by the ANC. People should not vote out of fear. They should vote out of a sense of hope, dignity and freedom.
Freedom means you can get up every morning in your beautiful home, and go off to your excellent school or university or dignified job, knowing that it will be safe for you to travel. It means opening your eyes each morning with a sense hope, and imagination.
Agang SA is here today to restore your sense of hope, dignity and belief that equality is possible.
BECAUSE CITIZENS, IT IS POSSIBLE
Twenty years ago many of us stood in elections queues for the first time to exercise our human right of freedom.
Next year, we must remember that our right to vote freely and fairly is enshrined in our extraordinary constitution - our constitution that Agang SA holds so dear.
If you don't exercise your constitutional right and responsibility to vote for Agang SA in 2014 we will miss the opportunity to restore the promise of freedom that Mandela, Tambo, Hani, Tiro, Biko and many others fought for.
The ANC is already on a path of tearing down the precious institutions we worked so hard to build.
They are introducing draconian laws that limit our freedom of expression and our right to know.
They are hiding their wrong doings and corruption behind a cloak of secrecy.
Too many feel excluded from the promises that are made and too many choose to leave our beloved country because they see no future for themselves and their children here. This saddens me, beyond words.
Steve Biko, Chris Hani and very many others did not die in the struggle against apartheid for us to face a reversal of apartheid, with all the same trappings of corruption, cronyism and police brutality.
We can create a South Africa where every single person gets appropriate skills and can start working the day they leave school or university. The four million South Africans on our streets deserve an opportunity for on-the-job training.
It is possible. Every single person can have hope, dignity and equality.
Our beautiful country is rich with resources - mineral resources, natural resources and human resources - and if we use our imaginations and are smart, there is definitely enough, for all, forever.
Young people, join the new struggle for your future. You must not see yourselves as the ‘disempowered younger generation' with nowhere to go.
You are our leaders. By exercising your vote, and voting for Agang SA, you can secure your future, and the futures of your children and grandchildren.
IT IS POSSIBLE
You can see our new logo behind me, and all around you on banners and T-shirts. We are very proud of our new logo.
Our colourful circle is inclusive of all the people of South Africa. You will notice the colours of our flag - because we are proud of what South Africa was promised when it was designed and raised jubilantly from flagpoles across our country at the dawn of our democracy.
You will notice our circle has 11 triangles. That is to represent the 11 official languages - a symbolic gesture that says Agang SA is for everybody, even though there are many more languages spoken here.
And notice how the circle moves like a wheel. Imagine it is a magnetic wheel. Every time we turn the wheel we will gather more supporters for our struggle for freedom.
And you will see that our colour is green. Green is the colour of growth. It is the colour of the outdoors, where we can find peace and renewal. It is a colour that represents our commitment to make sure we look after our natural resources to make sure that we will always have clean water, good food and beauty - so that there will be enough, for all, forever.
We are calling on all South Africans to rise up and claim the promise of freedom.
We need you to all be active citizens - ACTIVISTS - and gather other citizens around you to restore the promise of freedom.
IT IS POSSIBLE
Spiritual leaders - we call on you to add your prophetic voice to inspire your congregations to engage in our struggle for freedom, the way you did so valuably in the struggle against apartheid.
Women - mothers, grandmothers and future mothers - we need you to add your voice to our struggle so that our children will grow up with hope, dignity and equality.
Men - fathers, grandfathers and future fathers - we need you to help us protect the future of our children and grandchildren so that they will be safe, secure in the knowledge that have enough, for all, forever.
All adult citizens have a sacred responsibility to restore the promise of freedom in 2014.
I am constantly amazed by the tenacity of South African citizens in the face of oppression and a sense of hopelessness. Just remember 1994 when we unshackled the chains of apartheid oppression. We can do it again.
IT IS POSSIBLE.
Citizens, we can restore the promise of freedom - together.
If you haven't yet joined Agang SA, do so today. Every person counts. Every voice counts. And every vote counts. We need your energy to restore the promise of hope, dignity and equality - the very essential ingredients of freedom.
TOGERTHER IT IS POSSIBLE
Thank you!
Issued by Agang SA, November 16 2013
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