Hon Speaker, hon members, it is indeed with great sadness that Cope expresses its condolences to the family of the late Mama Florence Nyanda on their loss of a beloved sister, mother and grandmother, as well as to the members of her party, the ANC, as she was a cherished comrade, and to all of us as Members of Parliament, because she was a colleague and former fellow parliamentarian.
I got to know Comrade Florence when she joined Parliament in 2004 as a member of the NCOP. We both stayed at the Pelican Park Parliamentary Village. Every morning and at the end of each working day, we boarded the bus together to and from Parliament. We shared moments together as residents of Pelican Park, as women, as parliamentarians and as South Africans. I will always remember her as a quiet but friendly person, a dignified and disciplined cadre of her movement, and a person who took her responsibilities as a Member of Parliament very, very seriously.
Her experience as an activist cut across many aspects of the struggle for the liberation of our people - her people. As a member of her party, the ANC, she worked as an underground activist during the time of apartheid, thus risking her own life and those of her family.
She was a fighter for women's rights. She became a councillor and it was known that she ensured that she kept in touch with her constituency. She was deployed as a member of the legislature in Mpumalanga. She served as a member of both Houses of Parliament and, above all, she was a dedicated community worker.
What always struck me about Comrade Florence was how, in spite of her disability, she performed her task, as was expected of any other Member of Parliament. She was someone who never complained. She was calm and dignified and showed commitment and dedication to her cause. To me personally this is an example of the fact that one should never allow one's shortcomings or disabilities to stand in the way of what one wishes to achieve in life. It shows that with determination all is possible. She was indeed an incredibly amazing person. Cope wishes to say ...
... kumbutho wakhe i-ANC, makakhululwe uqabane aphumle ngoxolo kuba indima yakhe uyigqibile kwaye nogqatso lwakhe kweli hlabathi ulufezile.
Kusapho lwakwaNyanda lulonke sithi, lalani ngenxeba mawethu akuhlanga lungehlanga, akuhlanga lungehliyo. Myekeni aye kumawabo kuba kakade lento ingumntu yinto ehlal' ihlal' igoduke. Ndiyabulela. [Kwaqhwatywa.] (Translation of isiXhosa paragraphs follows.)
[... to her party, the ANC: May her soul rest in peace - she made a tremendous contribution and ran a good race.
To the Nyanda family as a whole, please accept what has happened as fate and may you be comforted. Let her soul rest in peace because we are all destined to depart from this world to be with our creator. I thank you. [Applause.]]