Premier’s reply on SOPA debate

MBOMBELA – The focal point of the liberation struggle was to reclaim citizens’ rights and the creation of an environment that will enable them to exercise those rights for individual development which will also contribute to the development of the entire nation.

This was the indication given by the first citizen of the province, Mr David Mabuza, during his oral reply to his State of the Province Address (Sopa), last week.

Mabuza said this was due to the fact that colonialism and imperialism undermined and suppressed the human rights of African people over many centuries.

During his reply as part of the Provincial Legislature’s initiative called “Taking Legislature to the People” (TLP) which was held in Secunda, Mabuza added that as a result the dawn of democracy saw the beginning of a protracted process to restore those rights.

“So, all the challenges that we are addressing as the ruling party post-1994 have to do with the restoration of our rights which are the foundation upon which we have to build the future society envisaged by the Freedom Charter.”

He also expressed his gratitude regarding the initiative as it provided an opportunity for people on the ground to interact with government representatives about governance issues, including their own challenges that are affecting them on daily basis.

Mabuza said that through his observation regarding the debates that were conducted among members of his cabinet, including opposition parties, was that all speakers commended the ruling party for making South Africa a better place to live in compared to the period of the white minority rule.

“There was general convergence among all the speakers that the Mandela administration inherited a country with a huge disparity in wealth and services between white and black communities and that of a population of 40 million people by then, 23 million lacked electricity or adequate sanitation, 12 million lacked clean water supply, two million children were not in school and a third of the population was illiterate.

He added that there was 33 per cent unemployed and just under half of the population lived below the poverty line. “Government’s financial reserves were nearly depleted because a fifth of the national budget was spent on debt repayment, meaning that the extent of the promised RDP was scaled back, making the creation of jobs and sustainable economic growth extremely difficult,” Mabuza said.

He added the state of the nation and province address delivered by both him and the president were building on the work of the previous administration of the same political party. “The various leaders of the ruling party do not represent intermittent administrations but one administration executed by different leaders at a particular point in time. We are not surprised about the opposition’s confusion.”

Mabuza said this was due to the fact that the concept of democracy was foreign to them and that they shouldn’t worry much because the ANC was there to hold their hands as they march towards the future. “Singling out Madiba from the collective is really mischievous and misleading. Madiba has been part of a collective.”