Minister Mzwanele Nyhontso's speech to the covenant service of the Uniting Presbyterian Church in Southern Africa
Reverence Matya
Other members of the Clergy here present
Church Elders and other leaders
Omama boManyano kunye Namadodana
Leaders and Members of the Youth
Fellow members of the Uniting Presbyterian Church in Southern Africa
Ladies and Gentlemen
I greet you all in the name of our saviour and redeemer, Jesus Christ.
It is an exceptional honour for me to be invited to address this Covenant Service of the Uniting Presbyterian Church in Southern Africa, which is my and my family’s home of worship and has been so for many past generations.
We were given a clear brief on what to cover in this address today; so allow me, Mongameli, to do exactly that, and stick to the brief. Although the temptation is always there for a politician to venture into a wide range of areas when facing an opportunity such as the one that has been graciously presented to me, we are also profoundly conscious of the fact that we are addressing a religious gathering, and it is therefore not our intention to misuse this opportunity.
Again, although one is an Elder of this Church, one will resist the temptation to deliver a sermon, especially when considering the beautiful and most relevant and pertinent Biblical citation that Reverend Matya shared with me. This is Isaiah Chapter 43, Verses 1-15, which contains this graceful statement: “Do not fear, for I have redeemed you; I have summoned you by name … Come forth, you have been summoned”. I will say no more except that these words indeed sum up the context in which we should make our Covenant with God.
We are standing before you here today to convey a simple message, which is that the government of our country is yours and you must use the services that it offers, to the fullest. While it is an undeniable fact that we are living during a period when our country is facing a host of challenges, we must remember that challenges require us as citizens to work together to address them.
When we say the government is yours we mean that your participation should not end with your vote. All countries that have developed and whose citizens enjoy a high standard of living, have one characteristic in common, which is that their citizens are actively involved in seeking solutions to problems and in holding those in positions of leadership accountable. In a word, these countries and societies are characterised by the fact that they have an active citizenry.
Many of us are parents of children who attend school, college or university, while others are grappling in their families with serious social afflictions such as drug abuse and teenage pregnancy, whose main victims are children and young people. We all have aspirations and the best hopes for our families, communities and the nation at large. Standing aside and doing nothing about these social maladies simply adds to the magnitude of the problems that we are facing.
As we are all aware, we have a Constitution that confers a range of rights upon citizens of our country, and it also goes further to outline a wide range of services to which we are entitled. Our Constitution does not say that these are things that we may get; it says that we are entitled to them by virtue of being citizens – provided, of course, that we observe certain responsibilities that come with these rights, and for as long as we qualify or comply where there are certain requisite legal stipulations.
We must also bear in mind that there is no contradiction between being a devout Christian, or a member of any other faith for that matter, and playing a role in changing our communities and country for the better. One of the leaders who towered above others of his generation and exhibited a disciplined and ethical approach to politics, Robert Mangaliso Sobukwe, the first president of the Pan Africanist Congress of Azania, which as you know is my political home, was profoundly shaped by his Christian upbringing and beliefs.
We also know about religious leaders such as Archbishop Desmond Tutu and Archbishop Njongonkulu Ndungane of the Anglican Church, Bishop Mogoba of the Methodist Church, Reverend Prof Maake Masango and Reverend Douglas Bax of the Presbyterian Church of Southern Africa, Imam Abdullah Haroon of the Muslim faith, and many others who led our people not only from the pulpit but also in the crucible of struggle.
What is contradictory is when some leaders and members of churches or other religious institutions place themselves in a position where they try to suppress those believers who want to play a role in the political life of our country, or actively take sides in trying to influence their members about issues relating to political affiliation. As the great philosopher of ancient Greece, Plato, once famously said, “One of the penalties of refusing to participate in politics is that you end up being governed by your inferiors”.
Coming now briefly to our role in government, our portfolio of Land Reform and Rural Development seeks to address one of the key issues and phenomena that lie at the core of the ongoing struggle to eliminate landlessness, poverty, inequality and underdevelopment among the African people. As Sobukwe would say "The struggle for the liberation of Africa is first and foremost a struggle for the land."
Our Department is responsible for implementing a number of programmes that are underpinned by the pursuit of certain Constitutional rights, which include the right to restitution, redistribution and secure land tenure. We are now at a stage where we are speeding up, broadening and sharpening our service delivery efforts in all these three areas, as well as in rural development and land administration. Having fine-tuned our strategies and programmes, we have placed our officials on notice to elevate and enhance their performance in delivering the services for which our Department is responsible. We are very serious about translating the statements and undertakings that are contained in our strategy documents and policies about prioritising women, youth and persons with disabilities in our programmes in both the land reform and rural development areas.
The main message that we would like to deliver to you today is therefore that those among you who would like to benefit from the services that our Department offers should come forward and solicit these services. Do not debate with yourself about whether or not you meet the qualification criteria for benefiting from any our programmes – come to our offices and present your matter, and let the processes determine where you stand. Our role is to serve you.
I thank you.
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