I'm sorry, Speaker. I say with absolute certainty that I believe we are ready for the world, and the world is ready for our stage. The success of this event is not a question of bricks and mortar, but of how much South Africa is going to be sold to the nations of the world. What is going to be the perception of those countries of South Africa? Is it going to be that Africa is just a dark continent with rampant crime?
We have hosted so many events in this country. We have hosted the Indian Premier League, in the middle of our own national elections! Therefore South Africa is ready to host any other event, and is equal to the rest of the world.
During our discussions Dr Khoza said it would have been an embarrassment if the government of South Africa had not supported the World Cup bid. He said South Africa would have been the laughing stock of the world. But today we walk tall in the corridors of the world because South Africa has made us as human beings proud. We agree with that, Dr Khoza. Everywhere we go, we tower over the world! [Applause.]
It is not rhetoric but an active reality that our lessons we have learnt from other countries. It is therefore with the greatest humility that we accept this World Cup in the name of Kwame Nkrumah, Nelson Mandela, and Samora Machel.
We hope that this is not going to be for the last time. We as South Africans are most privileged. That is because of the fact that in our time the World Cup has come to our country. Maybe it will come only in another 94 years from now and by that time we will not be here. At least we will be here to see the World Cup come to South Africa now. [Applause.]
However, we are challenging the international community to afford us the opportunity to host the Olympics. It is 113 years since the Olympics were established. If we are ready to host the Fifa World Cup, which was established in 1904, it means that we as a country are also ready to demonstrate to the nations of the world that we can host the Olympics. The Olympics must come to South Africa; we will be ready to host that great event too. [Applause.]
The 52 regions of the SA Football Association, Safa, are going to benefit from the legacy that will be left by the Fifa 2010 World Cup. We want to say that that is going to be a springboard for us to build a formidable and far better national team than we have. The Fifa 2010 World Cup legacy will provide us with a base to build something for this country.
As a result of the hosting of the Fifa World Cup, we have enacted two Acts, and one of them is the 2010 FIFI World Cup South Africa Special Measures Act. This Act aims to ensure that our people are protected in terms of safety and security, and that they are able to benefit from the legacy of this 2010 World Cup.
But the main question that people have been asking, even up to today, when we had a session with the Local Organising Committee, is: ...
... OoMamkhize bazakufumana ntoni na? [What will Mrs Mkhize and company get?]
We have stated it very clearly in the two Acts that ...
... ooMamkhize xa betshisa inyama, besenza zonke izinto ... [when Mrs Mkize and company braai meat, preparing all the dishes ... ]
... nothing is going to change. OoMamkhize is not in conflict with any other Fifa brand.
Bazakusinika inyama kulaa ndawo baqhele ukuhlala kuyo. [Kwaqhwatywa.] [They will serve us meat from where they are normally found. [Applause.]]
So, to the people who are panicking and asking whether or not our people are going to be removed with their ...
... pap en wors s ek vir die agb lede dat dit nie so gaan wees nie. Mense van hierdie land gaan hul boerewors in die stadiums geniet want dit is nie teenstrydig met wat Fifa in die stadiums het nie. Daardie dag gaan ons ons pap en wors geniet! [Applous.] (Translation of the Afrikaans paragraph follows.)
[ ... "pap" and "wors" I say to hon members that it will not be the case. The people of this country will enjoy their boerewors in the stadiums because it is not contrary to what Fifa wants for the stadiums. On that day we will enjoy our "pap" and "wors"! [Applause.]]
So, our people must be confident that the ANC, in its desire to enable our people to benefit out of this, has put these measures in place. The first thing that came to our minds was what would happen to those at grassroots level, because we knew that people were going to ask us about the grassroots. Therefore, we put these measures in place for the grassroots people to benefit out of the 2010 World Cup. We even went beyond that and told the 2010 Fifa World Cup Local Organising Committee that it would be correct if there were also, besides the fan parks that belong to Fifa, public viewing areas that were managed by the municipalities. This would ensure that there would be free zones for our people to go and party in during this grand occasion of the 2010 Fifa World Cup. There is such an agreement, and that is going to happen.
Therefore, we are calling on everybody to join us in this festival of football. The prophets of doom will come to this country, and there will be no need to wear bulletproof jackets at OR Tambo International Airport, or in Cape Town or Bloemfontein. Instead, in Bloemfontein ...
... re tla ba amohela ka masele ka siwelele sa masele. [ ... we will welcome them with a Celtic praise, Siwelele sa Masele, which means we are cheering for Celtic.]
They will see the passion for football in this country. In conclusion, Madam Speaker... [Laughter.]