19 February 2009
The ANC does not have a monopoly of wisdom, and that is why it is reaching out across barriers that in the past separated us as a nation. This was the central message conveyed by ANC Secretary General Gwede Mantashe to a packed meeting mainly of Afrikaners, which was held in Centurion on Tuesday evening (17 February 2009).
The meeting was convened as part of the ANC's Inclusive South Africa programme, which is aimed at bridging divides in order to establish a truly non-racial South Africa which belongs to all who live in it, black and white.
Mantashe said the programme was launched early in 2008 to counter the myth that the ANC was "arrogant and only speaks to its members and supporters".
"We initiated the programme in order to listen and to be able to tell the people what it stands for; and to get ideas on building the country and improving the lives of South Africans, also from those who have traditionally not supported the ANC".
Reaffirming the ANC's commitment to the ideals of the Freedom Charter, which was adopted in 1955, Mantashe said that it was guided by the principle that no government can justly claim authority unless it is based on the will of the people.
"Then it must be true," he said, "that the ANC must take the hands of all the co-builders of this nation from whichever background they may come. Even if a group did define itself as a minority, they have the opportunity and space to make a contribution and a difference to bettering South Africa."
The ANC wants to build an inclusive South Africa that works for all its citizens as equal South Africans. The minority concept suggests that one is not "part of the whole" and therefore the ANC preferred talking of an inclusive South Africa that "implied that all were equal players". This must be done in a manner that respects "the background, culture, language and religion of the component parts that make up the South African nation," he said.
In summing up the meeting, the participants indicated that they wanted less ideology and more focus on practical matters. They wanted "less talking and fancy plans" and more focus on performance, efficiency and service delivery.
>From the floor and from the podium it was made clear that solutions are not the exclusive domain of politicians or of specific political parties, but that all should seek solutions and that all should be engaged in bringing them about.
To achieve inclusivity, a two-way process was required. "It is not only a political party or political leadership coming to us and engaging, involving and including us, but it is also something that we should stand up for and allow ourselves to be included and not be spectators only on a pavilion shouting at the match - we should join in the match," one senior leader of the Afrikaner community said.
"Wat baie vars was om vanaand te hoor, is dat ons as Suid-Afrikaners in 'n gesprek vir mekaar en ook van 'n podium af sê dat ons foute maak. Ek het dit nog min op 'n politieke byeenkoms gehoor waar iemand so eerlik vir jou sê daar is goed waarmee ons foute maak. Dit is vars, dit skep vertroue, en skep eintlik by ons almal 'n opgewondenheid en 'n entoesiasme dat ons en politieke leiers van 'n podium af vir mekaar kan sê ons maak foute en dat mens dan weet daar kan 'n fokus wees om dit reg te stel," the leader said.
["What was very fresh to hear this evening, is that we as South Africans are in a conversation with each other, and we can say from the podium we have made mistakes. I have not often heard it said so honestly at a political gathering that there are things we have made mistake about. It is fresh, it builds confidence, and it actually builds among us all an excitement and enthusiasm that we can say to each other that we make mistakes and that people then know that there can be a focus on fixing it," the leader said.]
The focus of the discussions were on building partnerships to fight crime, alleviate poverty, create jobs, develop economic opportunities and improve the quality of education and heath care. While acknowledging the great strides that have been made over the last 15 years, such as broadening the social security net from 3 million in 1996 to 12,5 million today, and shifting access to electricity up from 58% in 1996 to 80% today, and access to running water up from 62% to 88%, the emphasis "should now change from just bringing services to the people, to improving the quality of those services," Mantashe said. This was in response to complaints about poor service delivery and the unacceptable levels of crime, which, Mantashe said, "the new ANC leadership was determined and committed to turning around".
Issues such as name changes, language rights, and the Springbok emblem were also raised.
In answering a question from the audience about the name change of Pretoria, Mantashe said that his understanding was that the city of Pretoria remained; the change is on the name of the municipality, which is called Tshwane Municipality, because it extends beyond the boundary of the Pretoria town. The two could co-exist, he said.
On the Springbok emblem, his view was that "the Springbok remains the official emblem and trademark of the national rugby team; the Protea is the official national sporting emblem. There was no reason why the two could not co-exist".
The programme of engagement by the ANC with different sectors and communities, as part of the Inclusive South Africa campaign, continues.
Issued by:
African National Congress
More information:
Ishmael Mnisi 082 333 5550