Thank you very much, hon Speaker and colleagues. It was with a deep sense of shock that I received a text message early on the morning of 11 July 2012 from an unknown person who was in possession of my contact number, indicating that Comrade Mbili had been involved in a motorcar accident. I was struck with disbelief. My immediate reaction was to get into my motorcar and drive to his home, which is about seven or eight minutes away, at Umgababa, where the sad news of his death was confirmed.
What was shocking is that the night before, as I drove with my wife from Durban to the South Coast, I noticed police cars and an ambulance at a particular spot on the N2 national highway. It is a spot where one would never expect an accident to take place. There was no sign of any vehicle on the road. However, I realised the next morning that the vehicle of hon Mbili had gone over the barrier and was not visible from the road. It was shocking to know that I had passed without even knowing that a friend and neighbour - we called each other ``makhelwane'' [neighbour]- had passed on in that tragic accident.
On a social level, we visited each other's homes quite often. I know I visited his home when he had had two accidents prior to this one. I also went there with my wife and we used to enjoy braais together. We used to socialise and, as colleagues would know, we used to exercise together. The way we used to exercise was to go for a walk. Accompanying us on that walk used to be somebody called Johnny. And Johnny, since we came from the pre- apartheid era, had to be black! That is why we took Johnny Black with us when we were socialising. [Laughter.]
You would know when hon Mbili was around, even on an aeroplane. We used to travel very often on the six o'clock aeroplane from Durban to Cape Town and then back to Durban on Friday. Even a blind person would have known that hon Mbili had come on board the plane, because everybody knew when hon Mbili was around. He had that kind of bubbly character, which was spoken about earlier on. He was loud, but he loved life. As the other hon members said, it is tragic that the Almighty, in whose hands we all find ourselves, had to take him away at such a young age.
At a parliamentary level, when he joined us, I was on Scopa, and he was too. It is sad that two very active members of Scopa, hon Mavis Matladi and hon Mbili, had to pass on. Both of them were committed in their resolve to ensure that there was accountability for public funds. Some of you, colleagues, would recall that hon Mbili once made a director-general cry. We were in the Old Assembly Chamber and, given his robust questioning, she had no choice but to cry because she could not provide answers. Hon Mbili would not hesitate when somebody - whether a director-general or financial officer - said, "Well, you know, we reported this official to the police." He would say: "Chairperson, can that hon member give us the case number because I will phone my friend, Commissioner Bheki Cele, to find out if a charge has been laid against that official." He would do it then and there! That is the kind of robust questioning he used to perform.
I have no doubt that hon Mavis Matladi and hon Mbili will set up a standing committee on accountability in the place we are all going to one day. I feel sorry for the angels, even for Satan, because they are going to make them account for the good and the bad that they do. [Laughter.] I can hear him saying in my left ear, "You know what, Comrade Naren, we have done that already. You are too slow in asking us to do that."
To the representatives of the family who are here - Mr Sibongiseni Sibiya, Sithabile and the sisters who are here, as well as other family members, and to the ANC, you have lost a very committed member. On behalf of the IFP, I want to offer our heartfelt condolences to his close friend, Ndabenhle Mkhize, and say ...
Hamba kahle, mfowethu! Ngiyabonga! [Rest in peace, brother. Thank you!]