Mr Speaker, my President, hon Deputy President and members, we meet here today having been elected to the fourth democratic Parliament of the Republic of South Africa. Every election is consolidation and proof of our people's commitment to deepening democracy in our country.
Could I just correct one of my white sons; I am privileged to call you "my son". You asked who was leading this country. This country is ruled by the ANC ... [Applause.] ... under the leadership of Nxamalala. [Applause.]
The recent elections were historic in a number of ways, not least because of the fact that our people came out in large numbers to confound those who have consistently claimed that as we move away from the historic events of 1994, our people will lose interest in the democratic project.
A staggering 77% of registered voters made their mark at the polls. They came out to defy those prophets of doom that have become a common feature before the elections. [Applause.] Indeed, if you were to rely on the media before the 2009 poll, you might have been convinced that the ruling party was set to suffer a major setback. Instead, we are back in the House with a fresh mandate from South Africa. [Applause.]
We owe it to the masses that voted for us to ensure that our democracy has sound political and ideological content. To do that, we have to look beyond the razzmatazz associated with elections and identify the real meaning of our mandate in this House. It is about giving our people real control of their lives. It is about ensuring that the electorate steer the body politic and are not reduced to mere passengers or spectators in the unfolding process. For us, every vote counts and no vote comes cheap. [Applause.]
Indeed, our movement has consistently strived to defy the political elitism in which politics becomes a matter for professionals. Our people should not be reduced to mere voting fodder and treated as though they are incompetent to shape the content and direction of our democratic project.
Both in terms of our understanding and our programmes, we have committed ourselves to participatory democracy. As hon members have heard, in this session of Parliament there has been talk of parliamentary activism, which you see right now.
President Zuma has indicated that he expects no less from us; it is our expectation of him that he will indeed go down in the annals of history as "Mr Delivery". And that is why I am back here, Mr President. This echoes the sentiments expressed by the millions of our people who continue to place their faith in us. Indeed, our position is that of privilege and responsibility - the privilege to serve and the responsibility to serve well, which is what we are going to do.
We hold the view that only an active, engaged citizen, who critically examines politics and social life, can impose the necessary restraints on bureaucracy, dogmatism, empty conformism and corruption.
We understand participatory democracy as the broadest possible involvement of, and meaningful contribution by, citizens not only in the political arena, but in all other spheres of life as well. To achieve this will involve the realisation of a fully participatory culture and society, not merely participatory politics. This is at the centre of what we loosely refer to as the people's contract. As representatives of our people, we need to inculcate and consolidate this participatory culture.
We must remind ourselves that this session, like any other, will be remembered not so much for its promises, but for what it achieves in service to our country.
Hon members will attest that -
Great figures in history are remembered not so much for their grand plans or noble intentions, but for their intellectual contributions in radically reshaping the political, scientific, artistic or cultural landscapes of their time.
We often refer with pride to the contributions of the likes of Kwame Nkrumah, Robert Sobukwe, W E B Du Bois: Pan-Africanism; Julius Nyerere: Ujamaa; and Steven Bantu Biko, of the Black Consciousness Movement, not only for their razor-sharp critique of power and clear political thinking, but also for their political activism. They each sought to introduce new ideas and, as a result, a new consciousness amongst their people.
Comrade Nelson Mandela's contribution is understood equally in this context. Aside from the role he played during the struggle against apartheid and his years of suffering in prison, Mandela will be remembered for his magnanimity, for his moral authority and for initiating and championing the process of nation-building and reconciliation. [Applause.]
This is the legacy that all South Africans, and the rest of the world, came to associate with the first years of democratic rule in South Africa. Beyond the lofty ideals that we set for ourselves, this session has an opportunity to build on the framework and successes of the past 15 years. We carry with us a sense of urgency with regard to rapid transformation and the delivery of social services.
I wish to highlight some of the obvious lessons that we can learn from Bantu Biko and the Black Consciousness Movement with regard to issues of strengthening a participatory culture and the notion of social cohesion. In doing so, I could do no better than again recalling Comrade Nelson Mandela's observation on this matter. At the 5th Steve Biko lecture at UCT, Mandela observed, and I quote:
[Biko's] death, which we remember and commemorate in these days, was in many ways as powerful in its effect on our national consciousness as was his life. From Robben Island we followed with immense interest the movement led and inspired by Steve Biko. The driving thrust of black consciousness was to forge pride and unity amongst all the oppressed, to foil the strategy of divide and rule, to engender pride amongst the masses of our people and confidence in their ability to throw off their oppression.
For its part, the ANC welcomed black consciousness as part of the genuine forces of the revolution. We understood that it was helping give organisational form to the popular upsurge of all the oppressed groups of our society.
Above all, the liberation movement asserted that in struggle - whether in mass action, underground organisation, armed actions or international mobilisation - the people would most readily develop consciousness of their proud being, of their equality with everyone else, of their capacity to make history.
The life, work, words, thoughts and example of Steve Biko assume a relevance and resonance as strong as in the time that he lived. His revolution had a simple but overwhelmingly powerful dimension in which it played itself out - that of radically changing the consciousness of our people.
I have quoted this section to highlight the importance and role of consciousness in consolidating a participatory democracy and thereby honouring the contract with the masses of our people. [Applause.]
Let me conclude by making some remarks with regard to the challenge of social cohesion and social transformation. As hon members would know, our Constitution enjoins us to spare no effort in building a nonracial, prosperous and democratic society. As I mentioned earlier in this speech, this goal can only be achieved through active, engaged participation by the electorate.
The 2009 election manifesto of the ANC serves as a reference point for formations such as street committees, trade unions, school parent bodies and other civic bodies to engage with provincial and national government on issues of concern to them. This engagement will facilitate the resolution of those tensions which continue to blight, not only our discourse, but also the intractable causes that sustain material inequalities in our nation. To this end, we should challenge those amongst us who have sought to suppress all forms of debate with regard to these issues.
Professor Sipho Seepe has observed that democracy is an experiment and that it is sustained by continuing engagement with new issues, ideas and evolving context. [Time expired.] [Applause.]