Inauguration of municipal offices in Ezinqoleni

REMARKS BY
MANGOSUTHU BUTHELEZI, MP
PRESIDENT OF THE INKATHA FREEDOM PARTY

I would like to thank the mayor of the Ezinqoleni Municipality, Mr Sipho Ngcobo, for inviting me to participate in the celebrations of the official opening of the new Municipal offices for the Ezinqoleni community.

I am grateful that the construction process is now complete, and that our people can now have access to resources that would make a difference in their lives through the provision of some of their basic needs.

I would also like to congratulate the KwaZulu-Natal Department of Local Government and Traditional Affairs for funding the construction of these new Municipal offices. I believe that these new offices will provide for a vast improvement in service delivery for our people, who have waited for such a long time. With the necessary infrastructure now in place, all we need to do is serve our people.

I would also like to thank all the people of the Ezinqoleni community who have made time to be here today, to share in this marvelous moment. Their presence at this official opening proves that they are truly interested in matters concerning their community. These offices will be a centre point for delivering services to all the people of this community. Let this opening herald a new beginning for the municipality, as a people centered service provider of services.

Let this be a new beginning for democracy to flourish, and expand to all the corners of this community. Let these premises become a forum for open communication, where our people can speak their minds and be heard by those who serve them. Our people have waited many years to be free. Let their liberation not only be encoded and acknowledged on paper. Let it be made a reality by the councillors who will be serving this community, through hard work and a complete dedication to serve.

During the apartheid era, our people were blatantly denied access to resources, which posed a hurdle to the growth and development for the majority of our people living in poverty. Poverty is the syndrome that has walked with our people, from apartheid into democracy, and is still with us today. Now that we are free poverty must no longer walk with our people, inhibiting them from taking advantage of the rights granted to them by our new found freedom.

Africa and South Africa should no longer be associated with poverty, as is the perception across the world today.  Changing our country begins in every single community. Those who serve should be passionate about the work that they do. Choosing to serve your people is one of the most virtuous things that man can do for himself, because by freely giving of yourself to those who you serve you can only reap rewards of growth, and development. By serving your people you are also indirectly blessing yourself. Those whom you serve will love you, and serve you in return. From this flows prosperity and growth.

One of the more serious legacies that we have inherited from the apartheid system is the syndrome of dependency. The apartheid system, which systematically devalued people’s dignity, reinforced the notion in many people’s minds that they need to lean on others in order to have access to all the resources that they need. Today we need to teach our people there is nothing which they cannot do for themselves.

The ethic of working diligently, to serve the needs of our communities and those of our families, needs to be re-ignited in our communities. Ubuntu goes hand in hand with working together as a community, for our own prosperity and that of our families. Basic skills development should be pursued as a mechanism for people to take proactive action to feed themselves, and their communities. God has blessed us all with many talents. These talents should be nurtured and utilized, to grow and develop our communities. The more self reliant and independent we become, the closer we will be able to move towards true freedom and liberation from poverty, and its many faces.

The many obstacles that in the past stood before our people, preventing them from accessing resources for survival, can be eliminated only if we are all willing to join hands, and work for our own complete freedom from poverty. If we do not all stand up to meet the challenges of our society, we will be swallowed by the stormy seas created by our problems. In this respect we are all accountable for the outcome of our lives.  

From individuals, to community based organisations and other associations, we all need to stand together and break the cycle of poverty, which is still with us after 10 years of democracy. Cooperation and partnerships should be fostered at all levels of our communities, in order to break the intergeneration cycle of poverty. This cycle can be halted, but only with our total dedication to this cause.

In my capacity, as leader of the House of Traditional Leaders, I wish to now speak about a subject which we are all too familiar with, which is the HIV/Aids pandemic. The HIV/Aids pandemic is a subject that has affected the lives of millions of people in our nation. Each one of us has either heard about someone we knew, whose life was claimed by the pandemic, or a close friend whom we lost to this dreadful disease. In other cases, some of us have personally been affected or infected, or suffered the loss of a beloved son or daughter, such as what has been my experience. What still troubles me today is that, despite the fact that people see what devastating effects this disease is capable of, they still choose to ignore that it exists and carry on living irresponsible lives, endangering their own lives and the lives of others. I have personally been humbled by the process of losing my beloved son and daughter. The pain left by this loss can never be filled by anything or anyone.

Now I wish to spread this life giving message across our nation: never take for granted the devastating effects that HIV/Aids can have on your life. It can either destroy you, or untimely snatch your life away. Do the right thing for yourself and your family, and get tested. If you are negative, do all that is humanly possible to protect yourself from being infected, by abstaining or practicing safe. If you test positive, do the right thing by changing your lifestyle in order to prolong your life. Seek advice from professionals about how you can live a positive life with HIV. We must also never discriminate against those who are HIV positive because they are still our brothers and sisters, our mothers and our fathers. The person is still the same person!  HIV/Aids is a disease like any other.  We need to continue loving them like we always have.  The essence of Ubuntu is human kindness for one another, not only in health. It is about lifting the burden of disease from the shoulders of those who need us today.

The scourge of poverty and HIV/Aids has caused many of our children to be orphaned far too early. Many children are now heading households and caring for younger siblings, while they are children themselves. Many children who are born into abject poverty, seldom have an opportunity to grow and develop. Child poverty can be alleviated. This starts with our own decisions, about when it is the right time to have children. This responsibility solely rests with individuals, who have children when they know that they will not be able to provide adequately for these babies. Many of these innocent children suffer multiple conditions of malnutrition, which can be prevented if we can stop for a while and consider carefully before we bring a child into conditions of abject poverty. Children are precious. Let us not punish them by bringing them into environments that will only cause them much suffering. There needs to be an awakening of our senses when it comes to the bigger problems we face on a daily basis. Let us start today to be conscious of these issues, and how we deal with them.

These new municipal offices should symbolise the beginning of a new awakening about the issues that affect our lives. The issues of poverty, HIV/Aids and child poverty can be dealt with. We need to be conscious at all times about the actions that we take, because every action bears consequences, whether good or bad. We need to start taking actions today that will bring about positive results for ourselves and our communities at large.

This new phase of community awakening, and the awareness about the problems that threaten our lives and our growth need to be at the forefront of our mission. As these doors open today, let them also open up our minds, and make us wiser in the manner in which we deal with our problems. Let this be a new phase for fostering real partnerships with each other about our growth and the life enhancement of our people.

May God bless all the people of Ezinqoleni with the courage and strength to foster growth and development for the well being of each and every one of us, and may God bless South Africa with health and prosperity.