Issued by: Gauteng Provincial Government
PREMIER TOKYO SEXWALE'S ADDRESS IN HONOUR OF DR MATSEKE, PRINCIPAL OF ORLANDO WEST HIGH SCHOOL
8 MARCH 1996
It is in a very different capacity that we stand before you tonight. Many years ago, like many of you, we were students at Orlando West High School. We had little idea then of what fate had in store for us. Never for once did we think we would all be here tonight to reminisce together, to share this meal, to shake hands, to hug, to shed tears, but, most importantly, to honour an outstanding educator such as Dr Matseke.
However, times have changed drastically. The world we knew then has passed on and we are now faced with different challenges. One of the most important elements of the victory of democracy and social justice is that we have won the freedom of intellectual thought, belief and expression. The system under which we were educated over twenty five years ago was one which allowed no space for individuality and creativity. The powers that held our education in their hands in those days had decided that certain roles in life were predestined and that all our education could provide for us were the basic skills needed to fulfill those roles.
Needless to say, no one in those days thought that we would ever get the opportunity to address you tonight as one of the democratically elected leaders of our country. The positions that we hold today are a testament to the fact that even with the severe constraints of apartheid rule and an oppressive education system, the knowledge that laid the foundation for our intellectual, political and moral growth was attained in these early days in Soweto.
Orlando West High School holds many fond memories, although these will always be tainted with the blood of so many who were lost or hurt during the turbulent years of the late seventies and early eighties.
The explosion of 1976, whose epicentre was near Orlando West High School, has in many ways been mythologised, but we should not forget the physical and mental pain and anguish felt by so many, amongst whom were students of Orlando West who lost their lives - many fled into exile.
However, due to the nature of the system in which we matured, school playing fields and university campuses were transformed into barricades and battlefields. The armed forces of the previous regime were equipped with rifles and grenades, ourselves with books and pencils and the belief that racism and discrimination, forced removals and imposed learning languages, were evils to be fought.
This moral highground did not always protect us physically, but it has brought us to where we are today. It has been a shield behind which we have protected ourselves from racial injustice and blatant disregard for human right. We prevailed against all odds.
While it is tempting to reminisce about the past, we pause to consider the urgent task confronting education now, at this critical point in South Africa's history. This shall enable us to understand the necessity in society of people of the calibre of Dr Matseke who have always been at the forefront of the struggle, not only for education, but for the total emancipation of all the people of South Africa.
Today we have achieved a fundamental political transformation of our political dispensation and witnessed a substantial shift in the attitudes of many South Africans. Liberation and our being in government has given us the opportunity to illuminate certain dark corners of the country. Without this torch we would never have exposed the evils and seen the classrooms with broken windows, the classrooms with fifty to sixty children squashed into them, the classrooms with no textbooks and very few learning materials. Without this Illumination, Potgietersrus would never have been known. Every school board is accountable to us now because we have seen what is going on around us.
To those who failed to establish a Volkstaat in our country and who think they have control in other sectors, we repeat what we said in Parliament. Our message is very simple.
We say No to Volkstaats in any part of South Africa.
We say No to Volkstaats at our school
We say No to Volkstaats in our homes where beleaguered racists are attempting to de-educate their own children, in the secrecy of their homes, against the positive and democratic values cast in stone in our Constitution.
Furthermore, we are disturbed by the echoing discords of violent disagreement such as those haunting institutions of learning such as Wits University. Additionally, at other universities across the country the students demand access to education, regardless of their financial positions and past academic records, and require of us to take cognisance of the past and to make amends. We recognise our responsibilities in this regard. However, in addressing and correcting the past, the future must not suffer - standards must not fall.
Statistics indicate that about 50% of the poor in South Africa have no education. Where they do it is incomplete primary education. The hardest it areas are in the hinterland part of the country. Nevertheless, it is noteworthy that access to primary education has increased over the past years and research shows that the number of students entering primary school is much the same for all sectors of the population. However, when we look beyond the primary sector, we see that secondary and tertiary enrolment rates are closely associated with income, showing that educational opportunities at these levels are very uneven.
We need to find solutions to this continuing inequality soon otherwise our doctors, bankers, lawyers, teachers, engineers and computer specialists will continue to be drawn from the same income brackets and the poorer people of South Africa will move further and further away from access to opportunities to improve their lives. We echo the sentiment by others that says political liberation must be complemented with overall liberation.
In this respect the message is a clear one. "To be literate is to be liberated".
After all, education is about much more than simply teaching students to read and write. Education is an investment in our people as the productive, creative and sustainable core of the economy and gives to them the freedom to make important choices about their lifestyle.
The world in general is becoming increasingly competitive. After years of isolation, South Africa is attempting to catch up with the expertise and intricacies of a technological age. We do not have time to waste in this regard. The 21st century is on hand and we are challenged to develop a skilled labour forced or to be left behind. Accelerated learning programmes in countries around the world are equipping workforces to take on these challenges and to be productive.
What we need in South Africa is a skilled and committed work force, which is able to meet the tasks of this new world order. Of course, education is the critical element in this scenario. We ought to prepare our children for what they will be facing in the future. The only shield that we can give our children to defend them against the harsh wind of competition are solid life and learning skills.
The severe budgetary cuts we have all had to face have caused us to suffer severely. However, much has still been accomplished in the way of providing for the education of all the children of South Africa in a single, non-racial, equal and just education system. The racially biased disparities characteristic of apartheid education will very soon be a thing of the past for both children and adult learners.
But we require commitment from the students of this province and country as well. The days of school boycotts and toyi-toyiing in the play ground are over. These are the days of the homework and hard effort! A culture of learning must sweep through our country and capture everyone in its wake.
We talk so often of developing human resources, of building human potential. But we cannot achieve such expansion of our human wealth without serious commitment to all our school subjects. We often refer to South Africa as country rich in cultures. Tonight we add two more cultures to the tapestry - the culture of teaching and the culture of learning!
Despite the years gone by my heart still remains in Soweto, in the streets and stories of our youth. Orlando West High School is an integral part of these fond memories and a lot of you here tonight are part of this wonderful tapestry. But at the centrepiece of this mosaic is the giant who stands tall, in respect, in integrity and who towers above many in morality. Dr Matseke has made us proud of his devotion, his courage and his great contribution in moulding many of us, the known and the not so well-known, to become morally upright citizens and to continue in the tradition of being educators and students - forever students of life.
Having reflected on this outstanding teacher, we need to consider that other giant who until recently was the Chancellor of the university where we were forced to spend some time - Robben Island. Talking about education, what lessons have we learnt from the twenty two months in government? Our growth rate has improved to 3%, job creation is a key priority, as is the reduction of crime, Mandela sandwiches are being given to children today for improvement in matric results tomorrow, our drive for reconstruction is apparent in many sectors of our society.
What lessons have we learnt from recent fluctuations in the market where our currency was thinly exposed and panic buttons were set off in the Johannesburg Stock Exchange and in many other exchanges around the world? Seemingly, we have failed to understand the recent international market behaviours around President Mandela.
The market was not reacting to Nelson Mandela. On the contrary, the market is relatively satisfied with the leadership of our President, hence the positive economic growth rate for the first time in fifteen years, the lowest inflation rate for the first time in twenty three years, controlled government expenditure for the first time in decades and many other positives. The reality of the market fluctuations has to do with the continuity and sustainability of `Mandela-ism". The market is asking us some pertinent questions about the sustainability and continuity of Mandela's policies and about the collectivity of the leadership behind him. We are confident that `Mandela-ism' will continue to prevail in South Africa. The task is to convince the rest of the world.
Seemingly it was an error of judgement to send the President for a three day medical check-up. He is not the problem. The market is concerned about the behaviour of all of us.
Therefore, the challenge for us is to never lose sight and grasp of the positive values of outstanding leaders such as our President, Nelson Mandela, outstanding leaders such as Dr Matseke.
Thank you.