Date: 14/05/2011
Source: The Inkatha Freedom Party
Title: IFP: Buthelezi: Address by the president of the IFP, at a rally in Msinga, KZN
 

It is an honour and a privilege for me to participate in this local
government election event in Msinga today. One of the venues for our
meeting with the people of Msinga ? the community centre named after
the late Reverend CJ Mtetwa and built for the local community by our
very own uMzinyathi District Municipality ? speaks volumes of the
commitment of the local authorities, led by the Inkatha Freedom Party,
to the welfare of the people of this vast region. These individuals
have worked hard to advance their communities and they would have
never succeeded in doing so without dedication and selflessness.

Being here has brought to me memories of many Amakhosi and outstanding
leaders of this community such as Amakhosi that have passed on
including Inkosi Prince Sigidisabathembu Owen ka Bhande who was my
Minister of Agriculture in the KwaZulu government for a very long
time. Outstanding leaders such as the late Reverend Celani Mthethwa
who also served with me in the KwaZulu government as my Minister. And
who was Minister also in the KwaZulu Natal Government after the dawn
of our liberation. I cannot help thinking of the late Councillor
Majola, who was Mayor of Msinga and had previously been our Magistrate
in Mahlabathini. We are fortunate that we still have with us Inkosi of
the aMaChunu Clan, Inkosi Simakadeni Mchunu who served with us for
decades as a member of the KwaZulu Legislature, and whose contribution
to the work of that legislature remains part of our joint legacy.

This history indicates that the people of Msinga and the people of
KwaZulu Natal and South Africa have known about the good record of the
IFP prior to 1994 and in our struggle for our political emancipation.
We have a track record which is unequalled in that we were good
custodians of the taxpayers' money that we administered then, just as
is the case today. The things we did with so little we received from
Pretoria stand even to this day as evidence of what I am saying here.
This municipality has never been accused of corruption. Your
Councillors have been good stewards of taxpayers' money. We have not
heard of dodgy tenders in this municipality. It is a pity that amongst
those who betrayed our trust was Councillor Mkhize, someone we thought
was fortunate for having been close to that great stalwart, the
Honourable Rev C J Mtetwa. But that is the way of life. In each
generation and in governments there will always be those who will fall
by the wayside as traitors to the cause.

In many other municipalities, corruption and cadre deployment have
caused so many billions of taxpayers' money to be squandered that
ordinary South Africans are suffering due to the resultant lack of
delivery. Municipalities in our province are in trouble largely
because the government persists in denial about the true state of
local government in KwaZulu-Natal. Instead of addressing the gross
underfunding of local government, financial woes of municipalities and
the lack of critical skills that hamper service delivery, the
government focuses only on what can best be described as an appearance
of service delivery.

I find it amusing how all of a sudden delivery speeds up ahead of an
election and how all of a sudden public infrastructure which
communities have had to wait for years magically appears for a
handover in the run up to an election. In recent weeks, Msinga has
seen its fair share of last minute service delivery functions by both
national and provincial departments, hurriedly bring long overdue
infrastructure and services. The aim of these "hit-and-run" functions
is obvious: come election time they come and seek to overwhelm the
local communities and overshadow the day-to-day management of their
municipalities by individuals from have firm roots in these communities.

But the danger to one's noble cause can sometimes emerge from within
one's organisation. It is most unfortunate that, for a time, our good
work in many municipalities whose control we secured in the 2006 local
government elections was compromised by a handful of self-serving
individuals who abused their positions at the helm of those
municipalities for personal gain. I will not mince words when I
denounce their actions. These individuals had been democratically
elected to lead our municipalities as councillors on the IFP party
list only to betray their party's values and principles once they were
safely in power. This is by no means a unique story of betrayal, nor
is it an isolated example of corruption by power.

The mismanagement of municipal funds and allegations of corruption
that resulted from the behaviour of these renegade councillors did not
merely draw the ire of the IFP leadership but caught the attention of
the KwaZulu-Natal Auditor-General earning the a number of
IFP-controlled municipality, such as eDumbe or Okhahlamba, a string of
unfavourable audit opinions from the supreme audit institution in the
province. As party leader, I had spent a lot of time over those
troubling days, consulting one-on-one with dozens of residents of
those municipalities ? from prominent community and church leaders, to
business owners and schoolteachers, to rank-and-file party members ?
about the course of action the IFP should take against the councillors
who have betrayed the trust not only of their party but the community
they were elected to serve.

These discussions were very eye-opening. Even before these councillors
revealed their true colours by conspiring against the IFP with the
so-called 'Friends of VZ' ? a pressure group established to advance
the leadership ambitions of the then IFP National Chairperson VZ
kaMagwaza-Msibi, the IFP leadership had no choice but to expel them
from the party on the strength of their shameful performance in their
respective councils. As things turned out, this decision has been
vindicated. The 'Friends of VZ' have since registered as a political
party under the unelected leadership of Mrs kaMagwaza-Msibi and many
of our former councillors who had given us so many sleepless nights
are now competing for votes in these elections under the orange banner
of the National Freedom Party.

Although this unfortunate episode has done a lot of damage to the
IFP's reputation on the ground and compromised efficient service
delivery in many places, its resolution has meant that today we know
where we stand. For the upcoming elections, we are bringing you
candidates whom we have appropriately vetted during our candidate
selection process and about whose integrity and loyalty to the party
we have no doubts. By contrast, our opponents in the NFP are offering
more of the same ? discredited individuals who previously ran our
municipality for their own gain rather than the benefit of its
residents and, in doing so, mismanaged and wasted precious municipal
funds. It makes me laugh when some commentators make the case for the
NFP as a party rooted in local government!

I am aware that individuals like the former municipal leadership at
eDumbe and Okhahlamba are one of the reasons why people like you are
disillusioned with politics and with politicians. We live in a cynical
age. Our political leaders too often play on our vulnerabilities and
our fears or exploit our differences for their own personal and
partisan gain. In doing so, they miss real opportunities for advancing
the welfare of those who put them in their positions in the first
place. In this respect, the NFP is no different from its big brother
and benefactor - the ANC. Whereas the ANC has campaigned in this
municipality peddling broken promises and using state funds, the NFP
is garnering votes with no proven track record of service delivery and
with dubious money.

My party and I, by contrast, believe in public service that is
consistent and selfless. I strongly believe that we can solve the
problems experienced by local government in general by doing two
things, namely:

- Restoring proper financial management in all municipalities; and
- Appointing qualified officials in specialised posts.

I contend that solutions to the associated challenges will follow. I
believe that the main focal point of those like the IFP that aspires
to serve our communities at local level should be to restore service
delivery by restoring proper financial management and controls in
municipalities. Without money municipalities will not be able to
deliver the services expected of them. In addition, we need skilled,
professional career local government officials and not deployed
cadres. This leads directly to tender and other forms of corruption.
We need people in positions who can do the work while empowering the
previously disadvantaged South Africans.

The success in local government rests on labour, in other words, the
quality of our human resources. In order to make the endless
turn-around strategies work in local government, we need a stable
political environment with the backing of skilled officials. I want to
use this opportunity to honour those many employees of Msinga
Municiplaity ? and they know who they are - who are doing good work
and who do not stray from the right path. We have witnessed first-hand
at eDumbe and Okhahlamba that the temptation to abandon the mandate of
the people and pursue personal agendas is only too great. Unless we
ensure that every elected councillor and every appointed official
emulates their example, we will never enjoy an effective and efficient
local government that would benefit everyone in South Africa.

With decades in power at local level in KwaZulu-Natal and most
recently in control of the province's 32, mostly rural and
underdeveloped, municipalities, the IFP has demonstrated its ability
to govern effectively, efficiently and with integrity and compassion.
Unlike others who only talk about a better life for all, we have
genuinely delivered services for all who reside in our municipalities.
Unlike others who only care for the select, politically-connected few,
we have brought tangible benefits to the workers, the entrepreneurs
and the unemployed alike. We believe it is the role of government to
ensure that everyone, irrespective of income or community standing,
has access to the basic and social services.

The IFP also believes that public service has the capacity to bring
people together to enrich the common good. If nothing else, I want my
party's candidacy in the upcoming local government elections, and its
time in office should it be re-elected to represent the people, to
demonstrate that politics and public service can be an uplifting and
creative force for improving our communities and leaving this world a
better place for our children. Here is what I have learned in talking
with people from all walks of life over the past few weeks since I
have been on the campaign trail:

? I have observed that people are tired of being promised the same
promises over and over again.

? They see taxpayer rands being used for questionable or downright
wasteful purposes and wish for greater financial responsibility in
government.

? They see poverty amidst plenty and wish to expand opportunities for
people to become self-sufficient.

? They see traces of corruption in every sphere of government and they
wish democratic institutions whose job it is to fight it would work
harder to ensure that crime does not pay.

? They see arrogant people in positions of power and they wish access
to those position were open to qualified individuals with a calling to
serve others.

? They see important decisions being made with too little input from
the citizens who will be affected by those decisions.

I, too, see these things and I, too, wish to change them. The message
I have brought to Msinga today is one of hope and opportunity. I
realise that my party cannot implement any one of its policies and
accomplish any one of its goals without you. Without you, we cannot
run an open and efficient local government that works with you and for
you. Without you, we cannot stop mismanagement, fraud and corruption.
Without you, we cannot prioritise spending on basic services and
infrastructure where these have been neglected or open more
municipalities for business. But we can do it with you. Vote IFP.

It's about you! I thank you.