ADDRESS BY
MANGOSUTHU BUTHELEZI, MP
PRESIDENT, INKATHA FREEDOM PARTY
INTERNATIONAL CONVENTION CENTRE, DURBAN : AUGUST
3, 2002
When I see young men and women of the calibre of
the IFP Youth, I am deeply encouraged for the future of South Africa. This is
the next generation of leaders in politics, industry, commerce and business.
The future prosperity of our country will be built on the backs of young people
such as these. When I see your enthusiasm, your commitment and your ability to
take the initiative, as you have done tonight in organising this fundraising
dinner, I trust that our future will see the vision fulfilled for a liberated,
prosperous and stable South Africa.
It is a pleasure for me to join you this evening
as we come together to break bread and enjoy entertainment. This evening’s
dinner, however, also carries a more serious note as we consider the theme of
South Africa’s path to economic recovery. This occasion gives us the
opportunity to put forward the IFP’s vision, a vision which has been spoken
of, advocated, celebrated and espoused for 27 years. Throughout that time, our
vision has not changed. We have adjusted our perspective according to the
changing requirements of the times, but we have not moved away from a deeply
rooted commitment to seek accelerated economic growth for South Africa, for the
benefit of all our people.
This evening, I welcome the opportunity to speak
once again on where the IFP is working to take South Africa. We have a vision
for South Africa’s future which is practical, workable and focused on
long-term, sustainable success. Throughout our country’s history, time and
time again, the IFP has been proven right in seeking a path which may not have
been the most popular or the easiest to take. We have most often sought the
hard path, because we know that when it comes to achieving the fullest measure
of what may be done, it is worth putting in the extra effort. We have never
been intimidated by hard work. Honest hard work has been the backbone of
success in this country for generations. On that front, nothing has changed.
Before we consider such serious matters, however, it would be remiss not to
properly thank the IFP Youth Brigade for the sterling task it has performed in
facilitating tonight’s fundraising banquet. As the President of the Inkatha
Freedom Party, it is my privilege to congratulate our youth and to deliver the
praise they rightly deserve. I am committed to supporting the youth of my
Party, because I see in them not only our future, but a future waiting to be
shaped to greatness. I must admit that I often have more time for the IFP youth
than I do for some of my older colleagues. The sense of right perspective and
patriotism so evident among these young people, inspires me to continue in my
often difficult leadership role.
I appreciate that each of us gathered here this
evening intimately understands the connection between our youth and our future.
When our youth have the boldness to organise an event such as this, I am
pleased that we come out to support them. I believe that the men and women
gathered here tonight are those who see our preferred future and who know what
it will take to achieve it. An initiative such as this is an essential part of
operating a political party anywhere in the world. Without finances, good
programmes remain good intentions. Even the most visionary leadership will not
inspire a successful revolution unless there are resources to see the
revolution through. In the end, for a party to achieve its goals, money must be
available to support it.
The central goal of the IFP has always been the
true and complete liberation of all the people of South Africa. Political
liberation is but a first step in the direction we have charted as a nation.
What must now follow is liberation from poverty and adverse circumstances,
liberation from unemployment, liberation from ignorance for lack of education,
experience and opportunity, and liberation from a lack of progress within such
a rapidly changing, rapidly evolving global world. There is no contradiction in
seeking to feed the poorest of the poor while at the same time supporting
technological leaps. One must be able to see the long-term needs of our country
and envision how we may meet them.
For this reason, the IFP has one foot in the
community and one in the global village. We know that unless we keep pace with
what is happening in the world around us, the problems we face today will
become magnified beyond our nightmares tomorrow. I must restate, however, that
our firm commitment is to the people of South Africa. There is a vast ocean of
need which requires our immediate attention. Today, mouths need to be fed.
Today, children require schooling. Today, many South Africans lack skills which
could secure their employment. Today, people live in fear of criminality.
Today, there is a lack of integrity in leadership which is stirring the
currents of a wave of uprising in which South Africa’s people are calling for
a stronger and more committed government.
The revolution of goodwill which has become the
IFP’s insignia can already be seen rising among our communities. Throughout
our country, people are standing up and demanding that we right the wrongs in
our society. Many of the social issues we face require a change in the hearts
and minds of our people. The demise of criminality requires a change in the
attitude of individuals towards the rule of law. As I repeatedly warn, the rule
of law must replace the rule of man. The end of abuse requires a paradigm shift
in which individuals begin to receive the respect they are due merely because
they are human beings with equal dignity. Ultimately, a change in our society
requires a change in the hearts and minds of our people.
But until that change is achieved, there is a
tremendous amount which needs to be done now, and this work requires money. The
fight against existing criminality requires resources for strengthening
policing and improving our justice system. Solving the existing malaise of
poverty-stricken communities demands that we have cash in hand to feed, to
clothe and to house. I have always been a firm advocate of federalism. I
believe that provinces must be empowered with greater autonomy so that problems
on the ground can be solved on the ground. I deeply appreciate the support the
IFP receives from those who recognise the value of this vision. The IFP has
made it clear that provinces know what is best for provinces, and do not need
to be dictated to by a central government which lacks appreciation for the real
needs of the people.
The IFP has been a forerunner in showing how
provinces are able to make decisions which are in the best interests of the
people, even when national government opposes such decisions. The issue of
making anti-retroviral drugs available to pregnant women, thereby saving the
lives of thousands of newborn babies, is a case in point. The IFP took a strong
leadership position and saved lives. It is vital that parties which provide
strong leadership are empowered, supported and strengthened. In fact, it is
essential to South Africa that the IFP grows stronger. We have never abused
power and we do not seek power for power’s sake. We use the power we are
given by the people to push for the best interests of the people to be
respected.
In this pursuit, we have constantly made our
contribution in the national Cabinet. We have carried the IFP vision into
international fora. We are operating at the top to see change delivered. But we
have never forgotten who we work for. It is the people on the ground who matter
to the IFP. For this reason, we continue to work within our poorest communities
to meet their immediate needs, while we look at long-term paths which can take
us to a sustainable solution. There are always ways and means. Conquering the
present seeming lack of ways and means demands a change in the defeatist
attitude so prevalent in our nation. As Henry Ford, the American innovator,
once said, "Whether you believe you can, or you believe you can’t, you
are right."
Opportunities are available for those bold
enough to seek them. This evening, the IFP Youth Brigade has shown us that the
opportunity to raise funds for a political party is present and ready to be
grasped. Unlike more established democracies throughout the world, we in South
Africa have not yet inculcated the notion that support for political parties
must entail financial support. During the years of apartheid, extraordinary
financial contributions were made by individuals to liberation parties in
support of the vision of freedom in South Africa. I regret that the IFP never
had the resources available to other parties, but I will forever be proud that
this fact gave us the opportunity to prove the degree of our internal
commitment.
Many of you will recall the historic meeting
which took place in London in 1979 between myself and a delegation of Inkatha,
and Dr Oliver Tambo and a delegation of the ANC’s leadership in exile. At
that time, we lacked the funding for our delegation to travel abroad. But we
recognised the importance of our coming together at that time and knew that the
meeting we would hold would determine the path of South Africa’s history in
the years ahead. Inkatha yeNkululeko yeSizwe prided itself on being the only
political home of the oppressed people within South Africa in which membership
fees were fully paid up. Still, money opens opportunities, and we required
further resources to attend the London meeting. I am proud to say that we
raised that money internally. We raised the money, we made the trip and South
Africa’s history was changed.
Since its inception in 1975, Inkatha has relied
on its own initiative to raise sufficient funds to fulfil the goals we have set
ourselves. As Chief Minister of the erstwhile KwaZulu Government, I worked with
our poorest communities to raise the money to build schools and clinics and
houses, when little or no funding came to us from the central government. From
years of experience, I know that money is available. When money is poured into
a sound programme, it is able to deliver good results. It is like preparing a
field, tilling it, ploughing it and sowing one’s seed. When everything is
done, one must wait for the rain. If no rain comes, no matter how hard one
worked, nothing will be produced. Finances
are the rain of provision which will cause us to produce as a political party.
Financial support for political parties is the
life-blood of a successful democracy. I make this statement boldly, because I
believe it is crucial that South Africa receives this message. Democracy
flourishes when there is a diversity of viable political parties making their
contribution. At all costs, we must avoid cultivating a one-party State simply
by disabling opposition parties through a lack of funds. I regret that among
emerging black businessmen there is no culture of contributing money to
political parties. Regardless of their allegiance, it is essential that those
who are able to make a contribution do so to two or three political parties, in
order to strengthen our democracy. We must accept the responsibility of making
an investment towards consolidating democracy in South Africa.
Democracy has taken root, but its roots are not
yet strong enough to survive a drought. Without the rain of provision, our
smaller political parties may not survive and the ominous threat of a one-party
State may become a reality. This is what the IFP is fighting to avoid. We do
not believe it is in the best interests of South Africa for one party to hold
all the power. It is inconceivable that a party would steal more power from the
people they serve, not for the sake of better governance, but for the sake of
more power. Yet the crossing of the floor legislation, of which I am sure you
must all be aware, enables this daylight robbery of power. The IFP believes,
and we are arguing strongly, that it is unconstitutional to change a political
mandate midstream.
Democracy is not being upheld or respected when
people whom voters elected to represent them on the lists of a particular
party, cross the floor to another party and take with them all the votes which
elected them, and their seat. If one is elected under one party, it is outright
deceit to steal those votes and take them to another party. If voters want to
change their mandate from one party to another, they must be empowered to do so
through an election. Nothing gives a ruling party the right to decide what is
best for the people or what they think the people should want. That is not what
democracy is all about. Even the title "elected representative"
speaks clearly of the fact that in a democracy, political office bearers are
elected to their positions on a party list. They do not choose their positions
in whatever party they like best today, and hop over to another tomorrow.
Moreover, elected representatives represent the
people. They give a voice to the voice of the people. They do not decide what
the people should say. These are facts that should be deeply ingrained in any
democracy. It is extremely concerning that it is not so in South Africa. There
appears to be no respect for democratic principles amongst those who seek to
steal power. Yet there are those parties which will always stand up for
democracy and demand that the right thing be done. Whenever a ruling party goes
astray, there must be a strong opposition to correct it for the sake of the
people. Opposition parties are there to protect democracy. They exist to ensure
that those in power do not abuse the will of the people or abuse their
position. The IFP has always performed a watchdog role, because of its deep
commitment to democracy and South Africa. As I have said, it is essential that
South Africans make an investment in democracy by financially supporting
diverse political parties.
People may be hesitant to make such an
investment in countries in which democracy is already consolidated, such as in
England. I was surprised, when visiting London last week, to learn that even
the ruling Labour Party is six million pounds in the red. Parties throughout
the world are struggling for money. Yet there are few individuals and
organisations who are willing to make a financial contribution towards a party,
particularly in South Africa. I suspect that many people are unaware that such
a financial contribution is in truth an investment in democracy. Therefore, I
must praise those who are gathered in this venue tonight for your insight and
commitment to democracy in South Africa. Your support of this fundraising
dinner speaks of your support for South Africa’s prosperous future. For that,
I thank you.
For years I have promoted just this type of
fundraising event within my Party, underscoring my belief that the Youth
Brigade, like all structures of the IFP, must have autonomy to carry out their
programmes in support of development, training, community upliftment and
service delivery. I take great pride in the Youth Brigade of the IFP.
Throughout the years, brilliant young men and women have cut their teeth in the
Youth Brigade and have gone on to prove themselves outstanding patriots and
leaders. The IFP Youth Brigade is indeed a seedbed in which we grow leaders.
From this structure, creative and innovative ideas have emerged which could
bring great benefits to our people. The Youth Brigade certainly does not lack
initiative, determination or vision.
Time and again, I have emphasised that good
ideas need money to back them up and help them become reality. This fact is
relevant from the smallest level of social activity, to the macro-economic
level of national policies. This is evident today. With the demise of
apartheid, equality was entrenched in our Constitution and we sought to reform
the entire body of law within South Africa to meet the requirement of equal
dignity and equal opportunity. Faced with the dramatically uneven distribution
of resources in the South Africa we had inherited, government became determined
to pursue redistribution as a means of redressing wide-spread poverty. However,
to anyone honestly considering the reality, it is clear that redistribution
alone could never redress poverty. There are simply insufficient resources to
cover the social landscape.
What we need is to accelerate our economic
growth so that we will have the resources available to meet the vast needs of
our people. Since 1994, the IFP has made its contribution and voiced its
long-term vision strongly at the national level of government. As part of the
constitutionally mandated Government of National Unity, we advocated economic
policies which we knew to be the best way of achieving the long-term goal of
economic prosperity. We supported the government’s Growth, Employment and
Redistribution programme, as it represented our own socially responsible free
market policies. Regrettably, due to inept management, GEAR lost much of its
initial potential to promote economic growth and failed to deliver all that we
had hoped.
As a member of the present Cabinet, I must state
that the Minister of Public Enterprises, Mr Jeff Radebe, is doing his best
within the constraints of what he is trying to achieve, to privatise the
State's assets. But as you all know, the pace of doing what he is trying to do,
could have been faster were it not for the fact that the ruling Party's
alliance partners, the South African Communist party (SACP) and the Congress of
South African Trade Unions (COSATU), are opposing privatisation. You have seen
members of the SACP and COSATU on your television screens dancing to the chant
"ASIYIFUNI GEAR" (we do not want GEAR). In other words, they reject
the Government's macro-economic strategy. You have seen what happened to
Minister Radebe last week, when the South African Communist Party Politburo
included him amongst those Ministers of President Mbeki who they booted out of
the Politburo.
The question one asks is whether in the midst of
so much poverty amongst our people, we can afford these kind of squabbles at
the expense of economic growth. It is quite clear that one of the reasons why
there is such limited economic growth and virtually no investments coming into
our country, is this very squabble. We know that we need economic growth
desperately in order to create jobs. Politics will soon mean very little to our
youth who are the ones who suffer the consequences of the joblessness that the
country is suffering from. Even the fact that our country's fiscal policies are
so good has not caused investors to be attracted to our country to invest.
A 1999 household survey showed that unemployment
amongst our youth was about 45 per cent. When I was the Chief Minister of the
erstwhile KwaZulu Government we created jobs, particularly in this Province. We
stood against campaigns for economic sanctions against South Africa and against
campaigns for disinvestment. We did not join those who adopted these policies
as liberation strategies, for we could see that the people who would suffer the
consequences of sanctions and disinvestment were our very poorest of the poor.
Exactly what we predicted has happened, and our country is in dire straits
economically.
The IFP has consistently advocated and supported
the development of a special programme of job creation. We advocated the need
to attract increased levels of direct fixed investment, which could
significantly expand South Africa’s industrial base. We advocated the need to
facilitate the competitive development of business in South Africa, the
liberalising of domestic trade and financial markets, and greater labour market
flexibility. We promoted the introduction of more cost effective fiscal
management in government, including a faster reduction of State debt. These are
policies we continue to support and put forward. Our commitment remains to
accelerate South Africa’s rate of economic growth.
It is interesting to see how through the years,
as the policies of the majority Party failed to deliver, they quietly began
adopting the IFP vision which for years had been ignored, ridiculed and pushed
aside. The paths we advocated were not easy or popular, but they were the best
and right paths to take. In the end, the majority Party recognised that we were
right, if not openly, then surely by their actions.
The value of the IFP for South Africa’s
successful future has been noted. I am pleased to say that the grassroots
people whom we have served for 27 years realised how important the IFP’s
presence in South Africa is long before our political opponents were willing to
concede to it. I maintained a close dialogue with the liberation leadership in
exile after the 1979 meeting in London. Former President Nelson Mandela and I
wrote to each other frequently. We kept up our correspondence throughout his
incarceration and remain good friends. My comrades in the liberation struggle
knew the importance of Inkatha as a component of our then unfolding history.
But I feel it was the ordinary people with whom we lived, with whom we wept and
laboured and became victims of violence, who truly understood that without
Inkatha, South Africa would fail to achieve her destiny. Today everyone is
talking about the President's Vukuzenzele/Letsema clarion call and yet the IFP
has always advocated self-help and self-reliance.
Today, The IFP is working hard and constantly to
achieve the victory of complete liberation. The road behind us is long and
filled with painful memories. The road ahead is filled with obstacles and
potential victories. For me, it has been an honour to walk this road with IFP
faithfuls such as those who are gathered here tonight. Were it not for people
such as you, our sacrifices would not have been worth making. Were it not for
the trust between us, we could not have come this far. Were it not for the
support of our people, South Africa may have been left with an Inkatha which
never grew into the mighty Party we are today. I am proud of the IFP. I am
proud to walk side by side with you, our supporters. There is really no
distinction between the two of us. The people are the IFP. The IFP is the
people. I thank you for your committed support throughout the years and for
your support of the IFP Youth Brigade at our banquet dinner tonight.
May our democracy be strengthened as the
financial rain of provision nourishes a vital part of South Africa. As this
rain reaches the roots of our country, may the IFP grow. May the harvest be
great for the people of South Africa.
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