ADDRESS BY ACTING PREMIER JS MABONA
Mister Speaker and Madam Deputy Speaker
Honourable members
Their Majesties the Kings
Honourable Amakhosi
Mayors and councilors
Religious leaders
Distinguished guests
Ladies and gentlemen.
LET me from the outset convey Premier NJ Mahlangu's sincerest apologies for being unable to share with us in these important deliberations today.
You are all aware, I am sure, that the issue of the moral regeneration of our society and our nation is a matter that is close to his heart.
And so are the issues of racism, HIV/Aids and poverty.
The Premier is also passionate about the partnership between the private sector, organised business, the labour movement; the religious fraternity; teachers; parents; farmers – in fact on all of us – in building anew.
It would therefore be appropriate to take this opportunity to commend the Speaker and members of the House for taking the initiative that has brought us here today. And to thank the religious leaders and representatives of our political parties for their participation.
A few years ago when government issued a call to the leaders of our religious communities to lend the full weight of their influence to the reconstruction and development of our country,
and in particular to its moral renewal, we did so with no preconceptions or prescriptions as to how this might be done. What we knew was that the social transformation of our country could not be separated from its spiritual transformation.
Yesterday Deputy President Jacob Zuma announced that we would be holding a moral regeneration conference early next year. Let today's meeting a build-up to such a conference.
It should be because it brings together the political leaders of our province with the leaders of its main religious communities.
In itself that is a great achievement. It gives much encouragement for the future. It brings together the two spheres of life most intimately and essentially involved in the generation, sustenance and observance of the values by which we relate to one another.
As a people in what must surely rate as the most beautiful part of the country, we have overcome obstacles, which others regarded as insurmountable.
Political instability, rigged examinations, theft and corruption, an exceedingly high rate of HIV/Aids infection and a high crime rate. As a people we put our shared long-term interests above short-term considerations.
We may not have completely eradicated the evils of greed, but a start has been made and we continue making advances.
Testimony of that is this Religious Parliament. The composition of this meeting today defines the moral renewal of our province as one of those matters which are so critical to our future.
The time has come to do all we can to seek out, beyond the political differences which we have, common ground as a basis for national action.
It is not necessary to rehearse the ways in which the inhuman system under which we lived so long undermined and eroded respect for one another and for life itself.
That apartheid was a sin and encouraged sinful behaviour is no longer a matter of debate. The symptoms of our spiritual degeneration are only too familiar.
They include the extent of corruption in both public and private sector, where office and positions of responsibility are treated as opportunities for self-enrichment.
All around us we witness corruption, violence in interpersonal relations and families, in particular the shameful record of abuse of women and children.
That six grown men can engage in a sexual act with a nine-month-old baby is shameful to say the least. And it says a lot about our morals.
When religious leaders encourage and get involved in tax evasion and illegal connection of water and electricity, then there is something seriously wrong.
That there are individuals in the religious community who abuse women and children, is bad enough.
Inasmuch as members of this community should be in the vanguard of dealing with these in the rest of society, the legitimacy of their leadership will also depend on the extent to which they root out these things in their own ranks.
It was to be expected, given our past, that we would encounter problems of this kind, but not, I believe, how great they would be. Nor that it would be as difficult to mobilise our society in a united effort to eradicate the problems.
As government we have given the highest priority to combating these evils.
Uneven though progress has been, and though all these things continue to occur at totally unacceptable levels, we can speak with confidence of turning the tide.
And to the extent that we can do so, it is because sectors of our society and communities, including religious institutions, have begun to reaffirm the moral value which are the condition of any decent society.
Our fight against crime has of necessity been a complex one with a wide range of practical measures. It has required the reshaping of a police force formerly oriented and deployed to protect minority interests and suppress resistance.
It has meant acting to root out corruption in all arms of the criminal justice system; and enhancing the capacity of the police at both managerial and operational level.
It has required the building of a partnership of security forces and the communities they serve, and an emphasis on co-coordinating all the operational forces and state agencies in a focused way.
It has meant tougher laws to strengthen the hands of judicial officers. All this is leading to more effective law enforcement, as is increasingly recognised. Today's initiative is of such critical importance that we as government will draw strength from it.
Our ultimate objective is to build a sense of civic morality in our communities. Recognising that at their best, debates, summits and conferences are the prelude to action, we are keenly watching the proposals that will come out of here.
Proposals we believe will strengthen our hand as government in fighting the evils I mentioned earlier. This parliament should provide a focus for moral living and conduct by every citizen and all people in positions of responsibility.
We believe too that the full force of this partnership of the religious and political spheres of our society will realise its true potential when you extend it into our neighbourhoods.
Extend it to areas like Pienaar, Mkobolo, Mmametlhake, Siyabuswa, Emjindini, Ermelo, Secunda and the deep rural areas. It is there too, where the crazed logic of racial segregation put us in separate camps, that the fabric of a renewed nation must be woven.
We MUST begin with the RDP of the soul. As a people we must create a climate in our province and our country hostile to crime, including crimes of corrupt practice within both the public and private sectors. We surely must do whatever is necessary to effect that RDP of the soul.
As we tackle the issues of moral regeneration, HIV/Aids, racism and poverty, let us do so constantly thinking about our ultimate goal: A better life for all – black and white. After all South Africa belongs to all who live in it – black and white.
Believe me when I say the best efforts of government to bring lasting change for the better will fail if we do not repair the moral fabric of our society.
Greed and disrespect for others; a lack of community feeling and social responsibility – these are spiritual enemies of our efforts to build a new society in which we can live in harmony with one another, in peace and prosperity.
As religion fortified us in resisting oppression, we know that it can help strengthen us to carry out the mission that history has given to our generation and the next - to make a reality of our hopes for a better life for all.
Religious communities have a vital role to play in this regard.
Just as you took leading roles in the struggle against apartheid, so too you should be at the forefront of helping to deliver a better life to all our people.
Amongst other things you are well placed to assist in building capacity within communities for effective delivery of a better life.
This better life is not only about delivering jobs, houses, education and health services. It is also about eliminating anything which threatens our hard-won gains. It is about making South Africa a safe place to live in.
Crime is a menace that disturbs any country. It hampers our efforts to build a society in which everyone's rights are respected.
While even one person feels insecure in our land, we will not rest. Government is doing its best but we face huge obstacles even from within our ranks.
When we speak of crime we are also referring to the corruption which is undermining our efforts to build a better life.
What is most distressing is that of those who plunder public resources for their own benefit include former fighters for freedom as well as those from the former apartheid machinery.
Overcoming crime and corruption and our other problems in the field of education, unemployment and poverty, requires every person to become part of the solution instead of simply being a spectator. In our schools and our places of worship, people should be encouraged to share in creating the atmosphere our land needs.
As religious leaders you are responsible for creating a climate of honesty, responsibility and discipline. As a society we should all reject those who steal bread from the mouths of little children or from the elderly or the poor.
We count on the religious fraternity to help us restore the moral values and the respect for each other that were destroyed by the inhumanity of apartheid.
Thank you for your attention.