Date: 01/06/2011
Source: The Presidency
Title: SA: Motlanthe: Address by the Deputy President of South Africa, at the book launch of “A double-edged sword” by Nkosi Phathekile Holomisa

Programme director;
Nkosi Holomisa, Ah! Dilizintaba;
Amakhosi;
Ministers;
Members of Parliament;
Members of CONTRALESA;
Religious and Faith-based Leaders;
Leaders of Business;
Ladies and gentlemen:
I thank you most sincerely for inviting me to this launch of the book, 'Double-Edged Sword', by Nkosi Pathekile Holomisa, Ah! Dilizintaba.
I wish, at the onset, to congratulate Nkosi Phathekile Holomisa for taking on this momentous task of collecting and collating these important "Archival Records on the Formation and Missions of the Congress of Traditional Leaders of South Africa (Contralesa)”.
Judging by this launch, Nkosi Holomisa is increasingly proving himself as a researcher and author of note, given that by the end of this event he would have launched two books in one fell swoop.
Delightfully, I have also been struck by the profound nature of these two books, which are seeking to illuminate some of the present challenges faced by our society.
Accordingly, this achievement that we are celebrating here tonight should teach us a very important lesson about the significance of recording and preserving our history.
It remains our duty to record our history, including contemporary history, so that, moving on, we can know and define ourselves accordingly.
In addition, this exercise enables future generations to have a first-hand grasp of our history.
Naturally, the role of traditional leadership in post-apartheid South Africa is a matter variously understood despite the time and space created for us as a people to clarify these matters with an eye to posterity.
So, this seminal book at once raises and discusses issues of historical significance in a manner that helps us come to terms with our present regarding some of the outstanding difficulties of our history.
This way most of the distortions, fabrications and falsifications of our history that served colonial ends in our past not only receive the necessary attention but become amenable to corrections.
Nkosi Holomisa's book has to be seen in this light. Steeped in the personal experience and cultural authority, it argues its case with vigour and clarity of mind.
For instance, in the book Nkosi Holomisa contends that traditional institutions in Africa are the oldest and most democratic forms of leadership.
In this he cites history to argue that, contrary to colonial claims, traditional leaders don't impose their authority via the creation of fiefdoms, vassals or serfs.
Nkosi Holomisa poignantly contends that African traditional leadership has been misunderstood by being placed on par with aristocracy and western forms of monarchy.
As he explains chiefs in Africa exercise democratic decision-making through traditional councils and do not own labour or communal land; they exercise their authority through the collective voice of the communities they lead.
These history-cum-cultural matters that impeach on our past, present and future as a people could only be illuminated by a learned and capable mind, such as that of Nkosi Holomisa.
Programme director,
Certainly for traditional leaders there are matters dating back to the Codesa era that have not yet been fully addressed by government.
However, we continue to respect, protect and promote the institutions of traditional leadership and in accordance with our constitution we also continue to encourage the transformation of these in line with our common values contained in the bill of rights.
We especially place high value on promoting an open and democratic society that values freedom, human dignity and the achievement of equity.
In short, we remain committed to a united, democratic, non-racial, non-sexist, just and prosperous society.
In this regard we have ensured that we implement the letter of our constitution by setting out a national legislative framework to define the place and role of traditional leadership within our new system of democratic governance in order to restore the integrity and legitimacy of traditional leadership institutions.
Admittedly, this is an ongoing process fraught with its own difficulties, which, I trust, will be fully addressed in time.
Ladies and gentlemen,
Having understood the challenges that plague the relationship between state institutions and traditional leadership institutions, I would like to turn to some of the pertinent challenges that the book raises.
For starters, Nkosi Holomisa submits that ubukhosi predates colonialism and apartheid-political systems that manipulated ubukhosi for narrow divisive ends.
In this connection, his conclusion that traditional leadership faced a quandary of being used as a "double-edged sword” provides essential grounds for the understanding of the contribution of Contralesa in the struggle for liberation in South Africa.
Part of the colonialist strategy was to use chiefs to carry out their policies.
Notwithstanding this many fought heroic struggles either to foil colonial encroachment or to resist incorporation into the colonialist system, which would have been tantamount to betraying our people.
In this post-apartheid and democratic space traditional leadership has to pursue the dream of reinstating the gravitas of this important institution even as they find creative ways of adapting to the inexorably fluid global world.
This point in turn brings us to the question of the role of traditional leadership in our modern society.
In this regard, Nkosi Holomisa calls for government's acceptance of traditional leaders' role as "custodians of the people's culture, customs and traditions... and (building) a caring society in the face of the rise in acts of immorality, criminality and the devastation of incurable diseases such as HIV and AIDS”
Government can only ignore this clearly articulated, compelling vision not only at its own peril but that of society.
Traditional Leaders have a pivotal role to play in our quest for social cohesion and building better communities.
Programme director
In conclusion, given these complexities, we must remain thankful to Nkosi Holomisa for providing us with the means to understand our history so that we can confidently map out our own understanding of the appropriate place of traditional leadership in the South African sun.
Once again I would like to congratulate Inkosi Holomisa on this remarkable achievement.
As the old African saying goes: Only once the lions have historians would hunters cease to be heroes! Commendably, in this book the lions do have a roaring voice, as epitomised by the admirable pen of Nkosi Holomisa!!!
Bayete: Ah! Dilizintaba
I thank you