Programme Director
HRH Nkosi Zwelivelile
Nkosi Nolusapho Mandela-Perry of Mvezo Komkhulu
Mvezo Traditional Council
Makgatho Family
Minister Angie Motshekga Honourable Premier Phumulo Masualle
MEC Mandla Makapula
OR Tambo Executive Mayor
KSD Executive Mayor
Doctor Chung Hon Dak (Chairman of the Chung Hon Dak Foundation)
The Reverend Mbethe and Vika of the Methodist Church –
Members of the Media
Distinguished Guests
Ladies and Gentlemen

Programme Director, it is an honour and a rare privilege to speak at this auspicious occasion, the official opening of the Makgatho Lewanika Mandela Primary School. The ground on which we stand today, once upon a time, a great statesman and stalwart uTata President Nelson Mandela once walked on this very same ground. Today, we return to Mvezo to honour this giant whose umbilical cord is buried deep in the bowels of this village.

Madiba, as he was affectionately known was the founding President of the modern day South Africa, founded on the values of freedom, peace, justice and equality.Lest we forget, till he took his last breath on that fateful day on the 5th December 2013 at 20h50, Madiba was a member and leader of the African National Congress (ANC). He dedicated his life to the struggle for the liberation of his people and the people of the world.

Madiba’s humility, compassion, and humanity earned him the love and respect of the people of South Africa, Africa and the World. Madiba’s abiding vision was for a society where no person was exploited, oppressed or despised by another. Madiba’s life was dedicated to the building of a united, democratic, non-racial, non-sexist, and prosperous South Africa and a just world order.

Programme Director, we are also celebrating the 25th anniversary since Madiba’s release from 27 years of incarceration by the apartheid regime. Sadly, it is two years since Madiba departed this earth to join as he always quipped, “the nearest ANC branch in heaven”.

More than anything Madiba loved children and valued education.

It is therefore a fitting tribute that today we officially open a state-of-the-art facility named in honour of the greatest sons of our liberation struggle. Today’s official opening occurs when the new South Africa has come of age as we have already celebrated our 21st anniversary of the 1994 democratic breakthrough.

Programme Director, indeed South Africa is a better place today than it was 21 years ago. We are indeed celebrating peace, non-racialism, non-sexism, democracy and prosperity.

It is also not coincidental that the official opening occurs during the Women’s Month when our country honours its finest and rare breed of human beings – i.e. our mothers, daughters and girls.
The origin of Women's Month in South Africa stems from the historic march by thousands of women who marched on the Union Buildings on 9 August 1956 to take on the might of the apartheid regime. We do indeed owe the Class of 1956 an immeasurable debt of gratitude for their bravery. South Africa would not be where it is today without these stalwarts and true servants of the people.

In the same year, we commemorate the 22nd  anniversary of the lives and times of the two colossal figures in a protracted struggle against apartheid, the sons of the Eastern Cape,  namely Comrade Oliver Reginald Tambo and Comrade Chris Thembisile Hani. Both these comrades - these finest sons of the soil - Comrade Tambo and Hani understood that freedom without education was incomplete.

In this epic year we also celebrate the 60th anniversary of adoption of the Freedom Charter. The Freedom Charter is characterized by its opening demand: “The People Shall Govern!” On education it unequivocally stated: “The Doors of Learning and Culture Shall be Opened! Education shall be free, compulsory, universal and equal for all children”.

In my State of the Nation Address last year I said: “Education is a ladder out of poverty for millions of our people.”

We are happy therefore that there is a huge increase in the enrolment of children in school, from pre-primary to tertiary level. The number of children attending Grade R has more than doubled, moving from about 300 thousand to more than 700 thousand between 2003 and 2011.

A Draft Policy Framework towards Universal Access to Grade R has been gazetted for public comment, with a view to making Grade R compulsory.

Eight million learners are attending no-fee schools, whereas nine million learners are getting nutritious meals at school, which are provided by government to ensure that they do not suffer from starvation and that enables them to perform well.

The matric pass rate has gone up from around 61 percent in 2009 to 78 percent last year and the bachelor passes improve each year.

Through the Annual National Assessments, we keep track of improvements and interventions needed, especially, in Maths and Science.

To promote inclusivity and diversity, the South African Sign Language curriculum is now offered in some schools. We have increased our numbers of literate adults through the Kha Ri Gude programme from 2, 2 million in 2008 to 3 million people. We have also been investing in teacher training and are re-opening teacher training colleges to meet the demand.

Siyaqhuba! Siyasebenza!

To produce a decent learning environment, we have delivered over 370 new schools replacing mud schools and other unsuitable structures around the country.
Programme Director, a lot has been achieved but a lot more needs to be done.

Programme Director it is therefore gratifying that the esteemed Royal family of Mvezo Komkhulu have also decided that the children of Mvezo deserve better opportunities and better education.

The Mvezo Komkhulu’s focus on education is evident through the establishment and realization of the Mandela School of Science and Technology, Nolusapho Early Childhood Development Centre and now the new Makgatho Lewanika Mandela Primary School. Indeed, we do have a Good Story to Tell.

In recognising the extraordinary human achievement of the son of Mvezo, in November 2009, the United Nations (UN) General Assembly declared, 18 July, Madiba’s birthdate to be the Nelson Mandela International Day. In taking this bold decision the General Assembly said the world must honour Madiba’s birthday as a token of appreciation for his extraordinary dedication to the values of freedom, equality, world peace and justice.

It further called upon people worldwide to emulate Madiba’s values of service to humanity, humility and compassion.  It is important to note that this was the first time in history that the UN designated a day to honour an individual.  The UN further asked the people of the world to set aside 67 minutes of their day to undertake a task that would contribute to bringing joy or relief to the millions of disadvantaged and vulnerable people of the world.

The only compelling reason that the United Nations agreed to set aside a day to honour the son of Mvezo  was because of his role as a revolutionary leader who spent nearly seven decades of his life in the struggle against white minority rule and for a free and democratic non-racial society.

Madiba’s greatness lies in the fact that he was a visionary, a democrat and international political leader who exercised his influence and leadership with humility and respect for his colleagues and opponents alike. He was, above all, a man who was stubborn in his resolve to fight all forms of discrimination, injustice and inequality.

Comrade President Nelson Mandela embodied the audacity of hope, the tenacity of youth and the militancy of revolutionaries in the struggle for the liberation for his people.

It was this selfless service, Programme Director and fellow compatriots  that earned him the recognition as a global statesman and the many accolades bestowed upon him including the esteemed Isithwalandwe - the highest honour that can be bestowed on the ANC leader, Member of the Order of Mapungubwe and the Nobel Peace Prize amongst many others.

In July this year we marked the 6th anniversary of the International Nelson Mandela Day.

It is within this context that today we gather here to renew our vow that our freedom is incomplete as long as sections of our society still remain vulnerable.
The ground on which we stand today is a refurbished school which will further the ideals of uTata who loved children and valued education more than anything else. To demonstrate let me quote Madiba’s wise words on the centrality of education in our beautiful land. Madiba once said eloquently that:
“No country can really develop unless its citizens are educated.”

Madiba put it succinctly in his world acclaimed autobiography Long Walk to Freedom when he wrote:

“Education is the great engine of personal development. It is through education that the daughter of a peasant can become a doctor, that the son of a mineworker can become the head of the mine that a child of farmworkers can become the president of a great nation.
It is what we make out of what we have, not what we are given, that separates one person from another.”

This school aptly named Makgatho Lewanika Primary School is now officially opened to ensure that the children of Mvezo never; never again shall they become hewers of wood and drawers of water.

We expect the next generation of Mvezo children to take up their rightful place in commerce, academia, leadership and the advancement of human rights and dignity.

We are indeed honoured to walk in the shadow of a giant that was Madiba. We owe to him and his generation an immense debt of gratitude for sacrificing life and limb in pursuance of our liberty.

We therefore have a historical duty to honour the ideals of Madiba and his generation through words, deeds and hard work in service of humanity. We need to inculcate in our society that there is honour in hard work. There is honour in humility. There is honour is serving humanity. There is honour in sacrifice. There is honour in showing compassion. We must through deeds agree with ourselves that we will not let Madiba die as long as we live.

President Nelson Mandela, the father of our nation and icon of our struggle, must never die for as long as the untold suffering of our people continue and for as long as the ANC lives to create a better life for all.

Together we have come far to build the South Africa that Comrade President Nelson Mandela and his generation envisioned.

Daily, we are confronted with challenges of delivering to our people the freedom that Comrade President Nelson Mandela lived and died for. Much has been done, however much more still remains to be achieved.The fulfilment of his pledge to liberate our people from the continuing bondages of “poverty, deprivation, suffering, gender and other discrimination” must be the inspiration that guides our people during this time and beyond.

In a moving tribute written by his comrade-in-arms, a mentor and a friend, the late Comrade Walter Sisulu, he says thus:

“In a world of the powerful and powerless, among decision makers and marginalised, among children, youth and adults, he was at ease and at home and, he made each of us feel less disempowered and more “captains” of our lives.”

In the son of Mvezo, uTata uMadiba, we have our nearest and brightest star to guide us on our way. We will not get lost. To Comrade President Nelson Mandela, today we pledge that as public representatives we shall continue to serve with honour and dignity. We shall spare neither strength nor courage in serving your people. We will not dare allow your people to languish in poverty, deprivation, discrimination and suffering of any sort.

I thank you.