North West Premier, Mme Thandi Modise has called on the church to pray for unity, stability and promote good moral values because democracy cannot function well in the face of decaying moral values and human indignity.
Addressing the Zion Christian Church (ZCC) Mass Prayers Meeting held at Huhudi Stadium on Sunday, Premier Modise said that faith based organisations can play a huge role in uniting the people of the province.
“We are living at times where our people are speaking in different voices and are continuously disunited.
As partners with government in the Moral Regeneration Movement, the church also needs to continue to play a critical role in ensuring that the moral values of ubuntu such as respect for human life, and respect for each other are inculcated, especially among our youth.” she said.
ZCC is one of the churches with the biggest membership and following on the continent with over 4 million memberships. Premier Modise said that members of the church are more than residents of the province and ironically more than members of the ANC.
More than 150 thousand members of the church painted the town of Vryburg with yellow and green as they joined the two days prayer service.
Many members of the church from local communities and outside the borders of South Africa such as Botswana, Namibia and Zimbabwe joined the service. Premier Modise said through the prayers of the churches most of the challenges faced by the province can be solves.
“Our communities are experiencing a lot of social ills, we read on newspapers that woman and children are being raped everyday. Young people are taking drugs at an early age and commit a lot of crimes in our various communities, we need to pray for all this because government cannot work alone in solving problems of this nature,” she said.
Premier Modise also highlighted that as the continent celebrate the 50th anniversary of the organisation of the 10th African Union, the service should change the order of things in the realm of the spirit.
“I wish to reiterate that African from time to time immemorial upheld appreciate moral standards and their moral standing chiselled in their culture and traditions have punctuated the heartbeat of every part of their social and economic lives,
This weekend of blessing for our province, its towns and villages is about looking to the Lord as the author and perfector of our faith,” she said.
Reflecting on His Grace Bishop Dr.Barnabus Lekganyane’s Easter message that called for South Africans to fight against what is ugly and repulsive in our society, Premier Modise said that unemployment, inequality and poverty are repulsive and ugly and need government to work together with churches to defeat them.
“The ANC led government regards the church as one of its principal partners as we strive to improve the lives of all our people, especially the poor. Accordingly, we urge the church to continue to use its capacity and infrastructure positively to impact on the process of transformation and change,” she appealed.
“Tribalism, racism, crime, corruption and greed also are repulsive and ugly as they rob our people and defer their dream of a better life for all that many of our people fought and died for. Working together we can do more to restore the dignity of our people,” she emphasised.
Modise said that the message of the Christian faith is fundamentally about upholding the values of justice, equality, peace, respect of human rights, prosperity and goodwill towards all people.
Premier Modise said that In 1927, when the status of African chieftaincy was downgraded by the Native Administration Act, Bishop Angus Lekganyane refused to recognise that African chieftaincy was subject to the whims and life of the oppressive minority government.
“To him, the African chieftaincy was an institution not to be tampered with, least of all by a foreign people who understand very little or nothing about African culture,” she said.
Modise said that government count on the church to lead communities in working together with it to foster respect of human rights, strengthening of families and communities and to build a strong foundation for a caring society that respects our traditional leaders and the institutions of traditional leaders.
Premier Modise thanked the ZCC church for taking all the efforts to hold the service in the province. In praying for the province Bishop Lekganyane acknowledged that the country is experiencing a lot of social ills.
“We have honoured the invite from Premier Modise to conduct this service because the church is equally concerned about the challenges faced by the country particularly the North West province.”
We will pray all of us as the church for the province to be at peace, he said. Bishop Lekganyane also praised Premier Modise for having the courage to leading the province to the right direction.
“I would like to thank Premier Modise for her courage and commitment to partner with the church. We will continue even after this service to pray for the province and its leadership,” he said.
Enquiries:
Lesiba Moses Kgwele, Spokesperson
Tel: 018 388 3705
Cell: 083 629 1987
Fax: 018 388 3157
E-mail: LKgwele@gmail.com
