PREMIER'S SPEECH
His Excellency Chief Mdluli
Members of the Royal family
Members of the House of Traditional leaders People of and surrounding areas
Honourable Members of the provincial government Distinguished guests
Ladies and gentlemen
Let me take this opportunity to thank the Royal people of Mdluli most humbly for having invited us to this occasion .Many years ago our forefathers fought pitched battles over these very plains in defence of encroaching colonialism and land theft.
Despite being out-gunned they laid down their lives so you and me could be free. They laid down their lives in defence of their dignity, their land and their freedom.
It was here, on these very plains, that the enemy applied the scorched earth policy in a bid to drive our forefathers from their strongholds in the caves, valleys and meadows of this beautiful land. It was then that our country and our land fell into the hands of the enemy.
Today we meet in the full and fulfilling knowledge that we can now declare: 'the country is in the hands of the people, dear friends! And so we meet, as descendants of those valiant fighters, in a different setting, in a different era, to plan for peace and not war; to promote unity and not division; to forge a common nationhood and not exclusive privilege.
That we gather at the dawn of the new millennium, is a reminder of the fact that, valiant though their resistance was, the African people were conquered; a dark interregnum of defeat and humiliation set in; and yet the resistance continued, taking many forms under many different conditions. In the end, right triumphed over might.
We meet not as victors to dance to the cries of war; we meet not to celebrate over any vanquished people. Our trophies are neither skulls nor precious booty.
We meet to assert the humanity of persons one to the other; to seek unity and reconciliation; to set shoulders to the wheel in building a better life for all.
I feel truly humbled to officially install Chief Mbangiso Isaac Mdluli; to stand before my leaders, at last to acknowledge their status and role as full participants in national affairs; as part of the corps of leaders in the reconstruction and development of our country.
The presence among us of so many people from different parts of the country once again attests to the oneness of our province, our country and our sub-continent. As in the past, and as it will always be in the future, we are one people with one destiny.
Chairperson;
We are mindful that the journey to where we are today has not been easy. But
all of us persevered because we knew that what we had set out on was the right
road.
In our province we have already set pointers to the kind of co- operation we want between traditional leaders, the province, district and local councils. We have started to address unity across ethnic lines.
The district councils and the House of Traditional Leaders in the province have submitted has concrete plans about representation; a plan that will bring traditional leaders fully into the socio-political life of the nation, and to ensure complimentarily rather than competition between elected and traditional authorities.
Later today I will have the opportunity of presenting a combined position on co-operation between elected and traditional leaders from Mpumalanga, North West and Northern Province to the President, the MEC for Local Government Mr. Sidney Mufamadi and other Premiers in Cape Town.
It will not be my own position. It is something I discussed with the district council and traditional leaders in my office. When the new constitution was drafted, there concerns were that it did not define in sufficient detail the status and role of traditional leaders; that it did not, unlike the interim constitution, oblige government to set up this council.
Some saw this as backtracking on the part of political parties; others interpreted it as a refusal on the part of these parties to acknowledge the unique African setting within which the universal ideals of -democracy and justice should find expression.
But we argued as the majority party and the government that we would be true to our word, true to our South Africanness, true to the traditions that form part of our rainbow nation.
The respect and recognition of the institution of traditional leaders require more than fine-sounding declarations in a constitution. They should reside in our hearts.
Among the questions that constitutional experts, politicians and traditional leaders themselves are debating is whether thorough- going democracy is inherently inimical to traditional institutions. This is not the forum to debate these issues in detail.
But we dare say that consultation; transparency and equity were the corner stones of the early societies from which we come. We dare issue the challenge that on matters such as gender equality, tradition - good and bad, then and now - cannot be seen as static.
What then, dear leaders are the concrete challenges we face?
Indeed, because we are meant to be leaders of the people, our challenges cannot be different from those that the people face.
Foremost amongst our tasks as a nation is to mobilise the people for reconstruction and development. As the people were their own liberators, so should they become active agents in changing their lives for the better?
For this, our communities need information about what resources and funds are available to them; skills to turn their needs into plans and project proposals; and an effective partnership with government.
Traditional leaders can promote these requirements.
Oppression was overcome in South Africa, and democracy is being built, by an ever-widening unity across the lines of race and ethnicity. But it would be a mistake to regard that unity as something that will preserve itself. We need constantly to encourage and promote it.
As leaders, we need to be vigilant in ensuring that the diversity, which is our strength, is never again used to divide us.
Fundamental to our unity is the mutual respect for the rich variety of our languages and cultures. While the constitution recognises rights in this regard and proposes institutions to promote them, this will have little effect without the involvement of traditional leaders.
Our freedom is also giving impetus to the recovery of our history. Recent excavations, together with earlier work, are freeing our understanding of the past from the colonial account of our country and region. They point with increasing detail to our country's place in Africa's civilisation.
Traditional leaders can promote and assist continuing research so that we know who we truly are.
Chief Mdluli, with your help your people need to come to a proper understanding of their history which has been most grievously affected by the ravages and distortions of apartheid and colonialism.
Bound up with the knowledge of our history is the resolution of the disputes on lineage bequeathed to us by apartheid's ruthless attempts to bend the institutions of traditional authority to its own end.
Again, we have a central role to play in helping to resolve these problems.
Perhaps more difficult than most, is to find the best ways in which our elected structures of local government and traditional leaders can work together for the good of their communities.
This is a crucial area for reconstruction and development, and a resolution of outstanding differences and conflictual matters is of the greatest importance.
Our experience has shown that with goodwill and a commitment to the interests of the community as a whole, even the most difficult problems can be overcome and mutually beneficial solutions found.
All these tasks will demand infrastructure and resources, and Government commits itself to providing these, within available resources. That is why we will look into the construction of the Makoko Road.
We are aware that you are worried about crime. We are also aware that you have a scarcity of water. Let me tell you that we also know that some policemen are involved in car-hijackings.
Our freedom is also giving impetus to the recovery of our history. Recent excavations, together with earlier work, are freeing our understanding of the past from the colonial account of our country and region. They point with increasing detail to our country's place in Africa's civilisation.
Traditional leaders can promote and assist continuing research so that we know who we truly are.
Chief Mdluli, with your help your people need to come to a proper understanding of their history which has been most grievously affected by the ravages and distortions of apartheid and colonialism.
Bound up with the knowledge of our history is the resolution of the disputes on lineage bequeathed to us by apartheid's ruthless attempts to bend the institutions of traditional authority to its own end. Again, we have a central role to play in helping to resolve these problems.
Perhaps more difficult than most, is to find the best ways in which our elected structures of local government and traditional leaders can work together for the good of their communities.
This is a crucial area for reconstruction and development, and a resolution of outstanding differences and conflictual matters is of the greatest importance.
Our experience has shown that with goodwill and a commitment to the interests of the community as a whole, even the most difficult problems can be overcome and mutually beneficial solutions found.
All these tasks will demand infrastructure and resources, and Government commits itself to providing these, within available resources. That is why we will look into the construction of the Makoko Road.
We are aware that you are worried about crime. We are also aware that you have a scarcity of water. Let me tell you that we also know that some policemen are involved in car-hijackings.
Let me promise you that we will come back here and together with Chief Mdluli, the local structures and those who like peace, we will clear this place of all cockroaches.
The victory that we have scored against apartheid has laid the firm basis for all the people of South Africa to unite across colour, language, ethnic and religious barriers. It has launched us on the course of realising our true potential.
Before the darkness of the interregnum of defeat and humiliation, great visionaries such as Mswati, Gonnema, Moshweshwe, Cetshwayo, Nghunghunyane, Hintsa, Montsiwa, Sekhukhuni, Ramabulana and Mzilikazi had come to the realisation that the disunity of the African people was at the centre of their woes.
Having together resolved that South Africa belong to all who live in it, we know that the unity of our nation is our strength as we strive to build a prosperous nation.
Our tryst with these forbears is to build South Africa into a united, non-racial, no-sexist and democratic country; a nation of Africans across colour lines; an African democracy in the modern world.
The country is in the hands of the people. Let us roll up our sleeves and get down to work.
We may, on behalf of all the people of the province of Mpumalanga extend congratulations to His Royal Majestic and the Royal Family of Mdluli on the investiture of Chief Mbangiso Mdluli.
This is a momentous occasion for the people of Mdluli and indeed for the entire province; and we are greatly honoured to share this moment in the beautiful hills and valleys of this beautiful land.
The Royal House of Mdluli has contributed greatly to the spirit of freedom and justice that now reigns in this country. Many heroic battles were fought in this region when your forefathers resisted encroaching colonialism and forces.
During the apartheid years your ancestors in neighbouring Swaziland bore the wrath of its powerful neighbour angered by the successes of the approaching democratic order.
Now that the countries in the region are finally rid of the cruel and crippling destabilisation of the previous South Africa regime, we can turn our full attention to the task of developing the region and spacing it firmly in its rightful place amongst the nations of the world.
This encourages us while realising that much more still needs to be done. The challenges facing us are different from those facing our forefathers. Hunger, starvation, illiteracy and unemployment may not seem as powerful as the enemies of the past but we know that they are equally destructive and just as painful to our people.
In order to better the lives of the people of Southern Africa we are committed to redoubling our efforts at economic integration and co- operation for development.
As a region we shall vigorously defend the peace and stability that we worked so hard to achieve' we shall strive to find creative ways to invite investment, boost trade and advance manufacturing.
While we present and revere our traditions we shall use our centuries-old experience to benefit our people; so that our peoples have access to the resources, education and technology that we need for success in the new age.
Let us joint hands to ensure that as we enter the new millennium, the political rights that the twentieth century has recognised, and the independence that nations have gained, shall be translated into peace, prosperity and equity for all.
The investiture here today of Chief Mdluli reaffirms for us the continuity between heroic tradition and renewal for the sake of the betterment of our people.
We are confident that Chief Mdluli, like his forefathers will rise to meet these challenges with wisdom. We wish him good health and strength to carry out his duties with courage and conviction.
It is now my pleasure and privilege to announce the investiture of Chief Mbangiso Mdluli.