Terror 's Full speech at COPE Launch

Dear friends, ladies and gentlemen,

The announcement of your intention to form the Congress
of the People (COPE) has affected our people’s lives in many ways –
both positive and negative.

I am however sad to report that, at times the negative
looms as large if not larger than the positive. That intimidation and
paralysing fear is now gripping sections of our society – and I mean
fear identical to that of the John Vorster and PW Botha era.

Public servants now talk in whispers when they discuss COPE.

Men and women with whom we worked and shared jokes now
have to look the other way when we chance upon each other along
corridors of state buildings. And then explain when we meet elsewhere
that they risk their jobs if they are seen to befriend us.

Both on the shop floor and at community level, tales of
spying on each other (as under Apartheid) on who attends COPE meetings
or not abound. More openly and glaringly, leaders of the party whose
ranks many of us once proudly swelled, thrive in political hate-speech
enriching their vocabulary as they go along.

Songs threatening and /or encouraging the hatred of or
the killing of COPE leaders have been composed and are sung at meetings
before their leadership addresses them.

Public meetings of COPE are regularly violently disrupted by people dressed in the ruling party’s paraphernalia.

The prosecuting authorities of our country have been
threatened with becoming ‘public enemy number one’ if they should
re-instate criminal charges against some among them.

Police officers who arrest leaders of the ruling party
tell under oath how they are coerced to change charge-sheets to
facilitate the escape of such leaders from the wrath of the law.

Eminent judges of our land, appointed by presidents
Nelson Mandela and Thabo Mbeki respectively while Heads of state and
leaders of the ruling party, have been described as
counter-revolutionaries, apartheid apologists if they are black and
incapable of understanding history if they are white. Lately, they are
also accused of colluding with COPE whenever they return verdicts not
favourable to the rulers of our country.

In the circumstances, the question is unavoidable whether
the present leaders of the party in power seek to insinuate that
presidents Nelson Mandela and Thabo Mbeki were themselves
counter-revolutionaries while at the head of our nation’s affairs.

Oh Yes, members of the Press, especially the Public
Broadcaster, are under constant pressure to give special attention to
approved new items and to ignore some such as this – your inaugural
conference.

Briefly, in the short period since we announced your
intention to explore the possibility of setting yourselves up as an
alternative political choice for the people of South Africa, democratic
practice has eluded the rulers of our country with alarming speed.
President Nelson Mandela’s profound early teachings in democracy have
forgotten or jettisoned overnight.

But, there is another side to this coin, today the people
of South Africa declare in increasing numbers that, where they were
daily getting disillusioned with the government of the day, the advent
of the Congress of the People (COPE) has revived their HOPES – Hopes
that were first ignited by the release of Pres. N. Mandela and that
thanks to COPE, a better future awaits them with renewed HOPE for
CHANGE:

• Where some had already lost such hopes, they declare that we have given it back to them.

• Where many had lost the energy to go and register to vote, they declare that they are on the come back trail.

• Many who had never voted before, say COPE is the reason they will now vote.

• Young men and women, declare with confidence that COPE arrived timeously for them to make their contributions.

South Africans who had lost faith in the dream of a
vibrant rainbow nation, announced by Nelson Mandela and then, left the
country in despair now rally around foreign missions demanding their
right to return and make their contributions towards a better future in
this country.

Men and women of conscience who yesterday hung their
heads in shame as they pondered the so-called leaders chosen for them,
now look their counterparts in the eye as they engage with them in
lively debates on the moral issues of the day.

South Africa has discovered afresh its confidence, voice
and energy and it is now clear to all realists, that as Yeats once
declared, “a terrible beauty is being born”.

In the International Community, fresh interest in South
Africans has rekindled. What doubts had begun to envelope views on the
prospects of South African democracy, have now been overtaken by a
cautious optimism and fresh confidence that here, unlike in many other
countries, which attained to independence and democracy, exists a
resilience sufficient to sustain the momentum to our promised future.
That a reliable and capable partner in the drive for excellence in
governance is still in gestation.

Therefore I make bold to say:

That, we owe it to our forebears in Presidents, Mandela
and Mbeki to build on the foundations put in place, under their
leadership, in order to avert the dangers now looming on our young
democracy. We must systematically discard what blemishes exist, but
cling tenaciously to that which is solid cornerstones, and then in our
own right add to the ongoing construction of an edifice of excellence
they initiated

Conference must therefore go to work with vigour and
determination. When we rise over the next two days, we must release to
the people, a policy manifesto befitting our nations expectations. The
people can no longer wait one more day, week or month. From you, is now
required firm and confident leadership.

LIVING DEMOCRACY:

The most urgent task before the organisation over whose
birth we are now midwives is the advocacy and teaching of how to
practice democracy. The events of the weeks since you announced your
intention to form yourselves into an organisation of one form or the
other in order the better to service the needs of the people of South
Africa, has underlined the imports of this responsibility.

FIRSTLY: Our people must be taught to know that it is
their paramount right to listen to all political parties, without
interference or disruption from anybody including by what party may be
in power.

They can then evaluate these parties and their policies
before making informed choices. This is the freedom of association and
freedom of choice at work!

SECONDLY: We must teach our members, supporters and the
public as a whole that no party owns voters. Therefore, we can neither
prevent other parties from persuading our members or supporters to vote
for them, nor be prevented from canvassing our ideas among voters of
any other political party.

As long as there is no compulsion or coercion, this is how democracy at work should operate.

THIRDLY: We have to instil the orientation of our members
and voter that every election campaign can result in either a victory
or a defeat for al parties. That voters may vote in their majority for
any of the contesting parties. And that parties that loose must counsel
their members to uphold the choice of the people.

We must avoid the pomposity of those who believe that once voted into power, one will be returned to power times without number.

The people need us to educate them to refuse to be drawn
into the anarchy that might saw death and destruction. In conditions of
anarchy, it is the people who suffer most and they must be taught to
shun any effort or attempt to encourage anarchy.

Leadership that understands democracy and is itself
democratic knows that it must be accountable and MUST pass the test of
scrutiny if the people are to reward it with re-election. Such
leadership is forever on its toes, anxious to fulfil what promises may
have been made to the people.

It lacks the complacency and is incapable of the
arrogance of those who declare themselves to be life-presidents.
History has placed upon us the enormous responsibility to counsel the
people of South Africa against such pretenders to democracy and we must
spare no ounce of energy in carrying out this task.

In executing this task however we must equally hold
ourselves accountable on appropriate democratic values and practice. We
must be ready to lead by example. Where we are abused and subjected to
hate speech we must refuse to retaliate in similarly shameful fashion.
We must set national standards and focus on the substantive questions
under discussion. Let the people judge for themselves which leadership
is deserving of their trust. The people WILL NEVER let us down!

Our leadership must be characterised by that humility
which understands that, who will be king among our people is he who
will serve, serve and serve! Yes, the leadership of the Congress of the
People must love the people on one condition only – THAT, WE SERVE THE
PEOPLE!

Only such leadership can make real the declaration:

“The People Shall Govern!”

I THANK YOU!!!