Address by President Jacob Zuma to National Day of Prayer for Unity, Peace, Rain and Successful Local Government Elections, Absa Stadium, Durban
Leader of Government Business of KwaZulu-Natal Provincial Government, MEC Willies Mchunu
Minister of Social Development, Ms Bathabile Dlamini
Members of the Provincial Executive and Legislature
Executive Mayor of EThekwini Municipality, Cllr James Nxumalo
President of the National Interfaith Council of South Africa, Bishop Matebesi nabafundisi bonke abakhona and leaders of Religious Formations,
Umphakathi namakholwa onke ahlangene la namhlanje,
Fellow South Africans,
I greet you all in the name of our Saviour and the Lord Jesus Christ, Namaste, As-Salaam-o-a-Alaikum, Shalom.
Siyanibingelela nonke, egameni likaMvelinqangi, usonini nanini.
We wish to thank the Almighty God for allowing us to gather on this important occasion, on which we seek to renew our commitment to peace, unity, nation building as well as an inclusive non-sexist and non-racial society.
We have set this day aside as the National Day of Prayer because we acknowledge that faith plays a fundamental role in advancing values which bind us together as a nation.
Our country was founded on the ideals of diversity and religious freedom which are enshrined in our Constitution.
Across all faiths, in our nation and across the globe, prayer is a powerful force that unites nations and promotes national unity.
Siyanibingelela nonke bazalwane, kulenkonzo ebalulekile.
Sihlangene nabaholi bethu bezenkolo, sizothandazela izinto ezimbalwa ezibalulekile ezweni.
Sithandazela ukuthula ezweni lakithi. Ngonyaka ka1994 savota safaka uhulumeni wentando yeningi ukuba aphathe izwe.
Sathi akube uhulumeni osebenzela ukuthula nobunye kubantu baseNingizimu Afrika.
Lohulumeni usebuse iminyaka edlulile kwamashumi amabili, eqhakambisa ukuthula kubantu bonke kanye nobumbano.
Sicela umphakathi wonke uthandazele ukuthi kungaphazamiseki ukuthula ezweni lakithi.
Sesibonile ukuthi kukhona abazama ukufaka imfundiso embi, abafuna ukubuyisa udlame ezweni lakithi. Bafuna ukufundisa izingane zethu ubuxhwanguxhwangu.
Sibona izinto ezintsha ezethusayo, njengodlame ephalamende obekuyindawo ehlonishwa kakhulu lapho kushaywa khona imithetho ezoletha uguquko ezweni.
Sibona udlame emalokishini ngisho nasezindaweni zasemakhaya ngengako-Vuwani nje eLimpopo. Sibona kushiswa izikole, into eshaqisayo.
Sibona udlame emanyuvesi kushiswa amabhilidi nezinye izakhiwo ko-Fort Hare, University of Johannesburg, Tshwane University of Technology, Wits University, North West, KZN nakwamanye amanyuvesi.
Izingane esifuna zibe izifundiswa zikwazi ukuxazulula izinkinga ngokusebenzisa ingqondo nokuthula, sezisebenzisa udlame.
Njengabantu baseNingizimu Africa, sithi asiyazi lento eyenziwayo. Thina siwumphakathi wokuthula. Angeke sivume ukuthi kube khona abasibuyisela emuva.
Salushiya udlame ngo-1994 uma sinqoba uhulumeni wobandlululo.
Sicela abaholi bezenkolo basihole kuzo zonke izinhlelo sithandazele ukuthula nobumbano kubantu bonke ezweni.
Masithandazele intsha yethu ukuthi ingadukiswa abaprofethi bamanga abayiholela ehlathini.
Masithandazele imiphakathi yonke ukuba ibeke phambili ukuthula nobunye ngaso sonke isikhathi.
Uma kunezikhalazo, azibekwe phambi kwabaholi babhekane nazo ngokuthula. Asithandazele nabaholi kuzo zonke izigaba ukuthi babake abantu baphambili ngaso sonke isikhathi. Abaphiwe ubuhlakani bokuxazulula izinkinga ezibheke abantu baseNingizimu Afrika ngokushesha nangozwelo.
Compatriots,
We want a South Africa that is united and peaceful and which does not discriminate against anyone regardless of gender, class or race.
We urge South Africans in all places of worship, in mosques, synagogues or temples, to pray for peace, unity and tolerance.
We are concerned about the destruction of infrastructure during protests. Government has built seven hundred and ninety five schools since 2009, at a cost of 23 billion rand. We have built seventy eight new libraries in addition to three hundred and four that have been upgraded.
Government is also building three new universities and twelve technical education colleges to expand access to learning.
It causes us and all freedom loving South Africans a lot of pain and disappointment to see such important infrastructure being destroyed.
People have a right to express themselves, which is guaranteed in the Constitution. Nobody in our country should tolerate or condone the use of violence. Our people should speak out and condemn violence.
Our people should also condemn leaders and organisations that preach and promote violence.
Nobody must turn our youth into instruments of destruction, and use them to destroy property including facilities that are aimed at building their future, to further their political ends.
We ushered in a peaceful society in 1994. We left violence, hatred and intolerance behind in 1994.
We must not tolerate any party or individuals who seek to take us back to the apartheid period of violence, anarchy and pain. South Africa is a land of peace. South Africa is a land of tolerance.
We urge all our people to unite and ensure that nobody disturbs the peace that we worked so hard to achieve.
Let us isolate all who promote violence. Let us also isolate and expose those who condone and turn a blind eye to the actions of those who promote violence.
There can never be any justification for violence and hooliganism.
Bazalwane,
Sikhulekela ukhetho olukhululekile olunokuthula lohulumeni basekhaya, Ngomhlaka 3 ku-August.
Umphakathi waseNingizimu Africa mawuhlangane ubumbane ungavumi ukuphazanyiswa yilabo abafuna ukusebenzisa udlame ngoba bengenazo izinhlelo abangazethula emphakathini ezizoguqula izimpilo zabantu zibe ngcono.
Masingavumi ukuthi amaqembu asebenzisa udlame avimbele abantu ukuba bakhethe izinhlangano noma abaholi ababathandayo. Izwe lethu izwe lokuthula. Sizokhankasa ngokuthula. Sizovota ngokuthula.
Masingavumeli abantu abasebenzisa udlame, inhlamba nobuxhwanguxhwangu ukuthi baphumelele ukubuyisela izwe lethu emuva.
Siyaphambili empilweni engcono sonke. Sibambisene njengabantu baseNingizimu Afrika, siqhakambisa ukuthula nobumbano.
Compatriots,
We pray for peace during the election campaigns and also during the local government elections on the 3rd of August.
Our people should unite and ensure that the campaign and election periods are hassle free and peaceful. There must be tolerance, peaceful co-existence among political parties and free political activity.
Parties must abide by the Independent Electoral Commission Code of Conduct.
In all our places of worship, our leaders of faith must lead us in praying for peaceful elections.
We must unite our people against violence, thuggery and hooliganism and ensure that we maintain our track record of peaceful, free and fair elections in our country.
Once more, we urge our people to go out in their numbers to exercise their democratic right by going out to vote on the 3rd of August.
Bazalwane,
Izwe lethu likhungethwe isomiso esesibulele imfuyo, senza kwabanzima nokulima, sanciphisa nokutholakala kwamanzi ezindaweni eziningi. Sikhuluma nje, ukudla kuyabiza kumba eqolo ezitolo ngenxa yaso isomiso.
Uma ifika imvula, ifika ngolaka njengoba sibonile lapha kwaZulu-Natali lapho izikhukhula zidlule khona nemiphefumulo.
Siyazwelana nemindeni elahlekelwe ngenxa yezikhukhula ezidlule nemiphefumulo lapha kwaZulu-Natali.
Bakwethu masiqhubeke sithandazele imvula kuzo zonke izindawo ezikhungethwe isomiso.
Sigqugquzela nemiphakathi ukuthi asiqhubeke nongoka amanzi ngoba amadamu anciphile kakhulu ezifundeni eziningi. Iconsi neconsi libalulekile kakhulu.
Dear compatriots and fellow congregants,
We pray for rain. Many provinces have been devastated by the drought.
Our people face high food prices currently because of the drought. The drought also has an impact on the slow economic growth that is slowing down the creation of jobs in our country.
We also pray for the families that lost their loved ones during the floods in KwaZulu-Natal. We share their pain and devastating loss. I know that the provincial government is providing them with all the needed support.
Compatriots and fellow worshippers,
Let us pray for Ubuntu, love and respect for one another.
Respect is the fundamental trait of any human being. Respect is the fabric that holds families, organisations, communities and nations together.
Once you are unable to respect the next person, it means you are losing your humanity and you risk losing what distinguishes human beings from animals. We must respect the next person, whether they are young or old. That is the essence of ubuntu.
We pray for our youth not to be led astray. They must respect their elders as commanded by the Bible.
They must respect their parents, respect one another, respect authority and they must respect the laws of their country.
We must unite and spread the same message, that our country is a land of Ubuntu, and that we are a nation that is made of people who respect one another.
When we disagree, whether at home, school or work, we must do so respectfully, and not lose our humanity or ubuntu. In all our homes and places of worship, let us pray for the return of that culture of respect amongst all our people.
Let us isolate those who want to introduce a new culture of thuggery and hooliganism in our country.
We must ensure that they are unable to turn any of our unsuspecting youth into hooligans who do not know the meaning of respect and decency.
Let us also pray for peace in our homes. There must be no violence and abuse of women and children. Let us pray for families that are engulfed by the scourge of the abuse of alcohol and drugs.
We must pray for all who are working hard to help our youth to stop drug and substance abuse, and pray for those young people who have taken a decision to stop.
Let us work hard to ensure that all our communities are free of drugs and substance abuse, and that they are free of pain and violence in the home.
Compatriots the month of May is Africa Month. In May, we promote our African identity. We also promote our languages, our culture and traditions as South Africans and Africans.
We urge all our people to use this month to appreciate all that is good about being an African, and to pray for peace in our beloved continent
This is also the month for us to reach out and understand better the cultures and traditions of our brothers and sisters from other African countries. We are one people and one continent.
We also pray for our military, members of the SANDF who are deployed in parts of the continent where they are exposed to danger, as they fight to build a peaceful Africa. We are proud of our soldiers.
We salute them for working for peace, as we want all our brothers and sisters to enjoy peace and tranquility in the African continent.
Inyanga kaMay inyanga esiqhakambisa ngayo ubu-Africa bethu.
Ngalenyanga masijabulele amasiko, izilimi kanye nakokonke okwenza ukuba sibe ngama-Afrika.
Ngalenyanga sikhumbula nabafowethu nodadewethu abavela kwamanye amazwe aseAfrika, sithi masithandazele ukuthula nobunye, sikwazi ukubekezelelana nabo.
Siyajabula ukuthi sekunokuthula emiphakathini lapho kwabakhona ukuhilizisana ngonyaka odlule. Uhulumeni wenza konke ukuthi abahleli phakathi bahlale ngokusemthethweni, baziwe ukuthi bakhona.
Masakhe imiphakathi enokuthula nokubezelelana.
Compatriots and fellow congregants,
On this National Day of Prayer, we also pray for the police officers who put their lives in danger every day, to promote law and order in country and to protect us.
They face difficult situations and continue to work hard and efficiently, in the face of extreme provocation at times.
Sithandazela amaphoyisa asebenza kanzima ukuqeda ubugebengu nokuqeda udlame nothuthuva emphakathini.
Afaka izimpilo zawo engozini esivikela.
Sithi uNkulunkulu awasikelele amaphoyisa aseNingizimu Afrika, awaphe ubuhlakani namandla okuvikela abantu bezwe lakithi.
Compatriots,
We pray for our youth that they become good leaders of tomorrow. We pray for the leaders of all political parties to work together to make South Africa a better place.
We pray for peace and order to return to our Parliament, so that the representatives of our people may be able to discharge their duties with dignity and respect for one another, and be exemplary to the people of our country.
Ladies and Gentlemen,
I wish to once again express the gratitude of our people to the various faith communities for the role they played during the struggle for freedom, and continue to play in building a better South Africa and a better life for all.
We also thank our religious leaders for contributing towards the broader development goals as envisioned in the National Development Plan.
We have established the Presidential Interfaith Working Group in The Presidency, so that we can promote and strengthen partnerships between government and faith communities in building a better life for all.
Maibumbane, sakhe iNingizimu Afrika engcono, neAfrika engcono.
Siyanibonga nonke bantu baseNingizimu Afrika ngokuthanda ukuthula.
Masiqhubeke sikhuleke ezweni lonke, sikhulekele ubunye, ukuthula, ukubuyisana nokuhloniphana ezweni lakithi.
Ngiyabonga.
