Nelson Mandela - Speeches - Address by President Nelson Mandela at official inauguration of the new Mawele High School, Msinga Top
Address by President Nelson Mandela at official inauguration of the new Mawele High School, Msinga Top
Members of the KwaZulu-Natal Provincial Executive;
Members of the Msinga Community;
It is a great honour to be invited here to share in the official opening of the new Mawele School. It is a special pleasure to see so many people here for the occasion, from every part of the community; from each of the political parties; and from every level of government.
It is right that we should be together to celebrate a school, because nothing can be more important for us all than the education of our children.
One of the worst things about apartheid was its neglect of our children's education. Freedom has brought us the chance to address the enormous lack of educational facilities in the majority of our communities. Government is tackling this problem, but the back-log can be overcome only when all sectors of our society work together - and in particular through strong partnership between Government, the private sector and communities themselves.
It is in the rural areas - here in KwaZulu-Natal as in other parts of our country - that our youth were most deprived of educational opportunities and indeed where all the basic needs of our communities were most neglected.
That is one of the main reasons that we decided to locate one of the Presidential projects in this area. And when we looked into this matter, it became clear that the renovation and upgrading of the Mawele High School was a worthy cause.
Mawele is one of those schools which was built from the community's own meagre contributions. At a time when you had no caring government to provide for your children's educational needs, you took up the cudgels and built a school out of virtually nothing.
We also identified the Embo Community Health Centre at Umbumbulu as another beneficiary.
When I approached Mr Meyer Kahn, Chairman of The South African Breweries, and asked his company to become my partner in these worthy projects, he agreed without hesitation to provide R6 million rand to fund them both as a combined development endeavour in KwaZulu-Natal.
Your efforts and enthusiasm, working within Department of Education guidelines; the support and involvement of the SAB; the efficiency of the engineers and builders; and the guidance of the Msinga Peace and Development Committee have made this excellent educational facility possible.
This is the spirit of Masakhane by which the lives of our people will be improved. As a result, today the people of Msinga have this fine school for its young people.
Now is it up to the community - parents, teachers and pupils - to make it work.
I appeal to all the young people here today to make use of these educational facilities and the other educational opportunities which our new democracy has brought. Study hard and dedicate yourselves to acquiring a good education. By doing so, you will not only benefit yourselves and your community, but you will also contribute to a prosperous future for our country.
However good our facilities are, we need the commitment of students, teachers and parents so that South Africa becomes a learning nation that produces the leaders of tomorrow. This is critical to the achievement of our goals of reconstruction and development, to economic growth and prosperity.
But there is one other thing that is vital for the realisation of these goals, and that is the co-operation of our political parties.
That is why today's ceremony is such a joy. Whatever the difficulties that led to the delays in this event, the presence here today of the leaders of each political party demonstrates that they put community development above any differences between them.
Ikusasa labantu baKwaZulu-Natali ngilibona liqhakazile ngenxa yomoya omuhle wokuthula, nokubuyisana, nobumbano engiwubone ngosuku lokugujwa komkhosi wokukhumbula iLembe obubanjelwe kwaDukuza esontweni eliphelile.
Ukubakhona kweSilo kulomcimbi, kubeyisibusiso esikhulu. Siyathokoza Hlanga Lwezwe. Sibonga nokubambisana noMntwana wakwa Phindangene, AmaKhosi; nabaholi baHulumeni waKwaZuluNatali kulomcimbi.
Ngiyathokoza futhi ukubona ukuthi izingxoxo zokudala ukuthula noxolo ziqhubeka kahle phakathi kwezinhlangano I-IFP ne ANC. Ngifisa ukuba ngibonge futhi ngesekele abaholi balezinhlangano beholwa ngu Premier uMbomvu, uMhlonishwa, uNxamalala, noMhlonishwa uNyambose. Ngithi kubo mabaqhubeke nomsebenzi wabo oncomekayo wokuhlanganisa uZulu.
Isizwe sika Phunga noMageba
Isizwe se Lembe - uNodumehlezi ka Menzi
Isizwe sika Bhejane e phuma esiqiwini.
Lomsebenzi eniwenzile ulethe izibusiso kusosonke lesifundazwe saKwaZulu-Natali. Nilandela endleleni yesilo - yokuletha uxolo, ukuthula kanye nentuthuko kubantu baso. Ngithi qhubekani ke nihole isizwe siye ekukhanyeni.
I would like to take this opportunity to congratulate all leaders for acting as leaders should. The needs of our people are immense, above all in the rural areas. Access to clean water; improved health-care facilities; and more education - in short, development and the improvement in people's lives - can only come about in conditions of political tolerance. These are the things that we expect the elected representatives of our people to focus on.
This school, like the clinics that have been built in and around Msinga and the nearby water project, are only the beginning of what needs to be done.
But the Mawele School project does show what is possible.
Uma kukhona ukuthula lapha kulesifundazwe, siyokwazi ukuthi sisebenze silethe intuthuko, nenhlalo enhle kithi sonke. Ngakho-ke nginxusa wonke amaqembu ezepolitiki ukuba abambisane. Kungabi bikho ukuphazamiseka kwentuthuko ngenxa yokuphikisana kwemibono nokungabekezelelani. Ngikhathazeke kakhulu ngenhlupheko ekhona ezabelweni nasezindaweni zabantu, nasemakhaya. Ngakho ngithi: Ngiyanxusa kini mphakathi, abaholi, amakhosi nezinduna masiyeke izingxabano sithuthukise izwe lobabamkhulu. Sithi silishiya lelilizwe, izingane zethu zisale zinekusasa eziziqhenyayo ngalo.
Ngifisa ukubongela iSizwe samaBomvu no Msinga wonke ngalesisikole esisezingeni eliphakeme. Sibonga inkampani yakwaSouth African Breweries ngomusa wabo wokunikela ngezizumbulu zemali ezakhe lesisikole. Siwuphawu lokubambisana phakathi kwabamabhizinisi noHulumeni. Siwuphawu lokuzimisela nezifiso zikaHulumeni zokuthi intsha yethu ifunde ingadukiswa ize igcine ingenwe wubugebengu noma ingenwe ukusebenzisa izidakamizwa.
Nisiphathe kahle lesisikole ngoba esenu nezizukulwana ezizayo - singumthombo wolwazi - siyisibani sokukhanyisela wonke UMsinga.
May I in conclusion thank all those whose hard work and co-operation has created this precious community school. They have set a shining example of what can be achieved when all of us - government; private sector and community - join hands to work for the things that unite us.
It is now my pleasure to officially unveil the plaque to mark the opening of the New Mawele High School.