President Cyril Ramaphosa's eulogy for Minister Jackson Mthembu
1. Programme Directors,
MinisterGwede Mantashe
Lindiwe NtshaliNtshali
DeputyPresidentDavidMabuza,
Membersof the Mthembufamily,
Premierof Mpumalanga,Ms RefilweMtshweni-Tsipane,
Ministers,DeputyMinistersandMECs,
Mayor of Emalahleni
Leadershipof the AfricanNational Congressandthe Alliance,
Leadersof Political Parties
The Right ReverendBishopXoleloKumaloof the RomanCatholicDiocese of Witbank,
Religiousandtraditional leaderspresent,
ComradesandFriends,
FellowMourners,
On thisday, a great shadowhas fallenandhangsuponthisplace of the risingsun,and ithangs heavy
across the entire land.
MinisterJacksonMthembu,Comrade Jackson,Mvelase,isnomore.
For those whoknewhim,whoworkedalongside him, whocountedandreliedon him, whowere ledby
him,wholearnedfromhim,wholovedhim, itisunbearablethatwe will neversee himagain.
I was shockedandheartbrokenwhenIreceivedthe newsof MinisterMthembu’suntimelypassingfrom
the Ministerof HealthDr Zweli Mkhize andthe doctor whowasin charge of treatinghim, Dr Williams,
on Thursday.
2. The newsstruck a deepandsolemnnote.
I rememberedthe wordsof WilliamShakespeare,thatwhensorrowscome,theycome notassingle
spies,butinbattalions.
The coronavirushas causedsomany sorrowsinour country.
Our society,like mostaroundthe world,hasbeenplungedintoturmoil.
We have lostso manylivestothisdisease.
There have beentearsandgrief inso manyhomes.
We have hadto endure somuch that at timesithas seemedtoogreatto bear.
Andnowthe stroke of deathhas takenthe veryone whohas beenourcitadel,ourrock and our towerof
strengthat thisdreadful momentinourcountry’shistory.
Amidstthisgreatupheaval,whenourpeopleare sofearful of the future,theyhave lookedtoleaders
like JacksonMthembuforreassurance andforcertainty.
As the Ministerinthe Presidency,he wasthe publicface of our government,communicatingitspolicies
and itsdecisions.
Duringthe pandemic,he carriedourmessage of compassion,solidarityandunity.
3. MinisterMthembuwasat the forefrontof our national efforttocontainthe coronaviruspandemic;the
verypandemicthathas nowclaimedhim.
Whenwe foundourselvesclosetodespair,asa people andanation,he offeredhope.
Whenour nation’sspiritswere downandflagging,he liftedthemup.
He broughtclarity,certaintyandthe utmostprofessionalismtoeverytaskhe wasassigned.
He has leftahuge voidinour government,inthe movementtowhichhe dedicatedhislife andinthe
countryof whichhe was sucha proudcitizen.
Mvelase wasamongthose infinitelyrare individualsinourpolitically-chargedsociety.
He wasadmiredandrespectedacrossparty lines.
It has beenprofoundlytouchingtowitnesshow the newsof JacksonMthembu’spassingstilledthe
clatterand bickeringthathasconsumedusin recenttimesandunitedusinour sorrow.
One dare hope thatthe sentimentthathasbeendisplayedatJacksonMthembu’spassingisareminder
that we have far more in commonthanwe may choose to believe,whetherasmembersof societyoras
political parties.
Afterall,we all wantone thing:whatis bestforour country.
We have losta man whowas able totranscendpolitical differences,andtoreach outand forge alliances
inpursuitof a commongoal.
4. We needmore menandwomenlike him, whounderstandandappreciate thatwe are all heading inthe
same direction,andthatthe onward march to a betterSouthAfricaisso much easierif we work
together.
He wasa manwho wasgreatlyrespectedandloved.
By hisfamily,byhiscommunity,byhiscolleaguesinCabinet,byhiscomradesinthe ANC, byhisfellow
MPs, and byhisfriendsinthe mediawithwhomhe hadlongstandingandcordial relations.
I have lostnot justa dependablecolleague andacomrade.
I have losta dear friend,anditisa lossI feel mostkeenly.
MinisterMthembuhadmanyvirtuesthatI observedoverthe manyyearsof the friendshipwe shared.
He wasgenerousinspiritandhad a charmingpersonality.
He had the endearingabilitytoliftmymoodandfortifymyresolve ineventhe mostdifficultsituations.
He had a sense of humourthatwas oftenmostirreverent.
He laughed –withhisentire body – about thingsthathe probablyshouldn’thave,justashe cared
deeplyabouteverythingthathe should.
He wasprincipledandaman of greatcourage,in timesof bothcalm anddifficulty.
5. He wasan honestman whoneverhesitatedtospeakupforwhathe believedtobe right,no matterthe
cost.
His life wasfull of meaningandaccomplishmentinthe wayhe dedicatedhimselftoserve the peopleof
our country.
I will rememberhimforhiskindness,hisprofessional approach,butabove all forhisever-presentsense
of calm,evenina crisisor whenwe wouldbe underextremepressure.
He wasa voice of reason,a voice of wisdom, whichhe exemplifiedinthe advice he gave me asa
Ministerinthe Presidency.
Nota single daywouldgopastwithouthimcallingme forsome matteror other.
At timeshe wouldcall justtosay, “Howare you,Mr President?”.
He wasfaithful andloyal.
To hismovement,the AfricanNationalCongress,he workedsohardona dailybasistoadvance its
cause.
To the governmenthe swore toserve.
To the Constitutionhe pledgedtodefendandprotect.
To hisCabinetcolleaguesand tome as hisPresident.
6. But hisgreatestloyaltywasreservedforthiscountryanditspeople.
We rememberthe youngfirebrand,studentactivistandtrade unionleaderwhofoughtforour
liberationfromtyranny,guidednotbyambitionorexpectationof reward,butbyhisprinciples.
We rememberthe committedmemberandleaderof the ANCwhoformany yearsservedasits
spokespersonanditsChief WhipinParliament.
We rememberhimasa spiritedandlivelyMemberof Parliamentwhowonthe respectof hispeers,even
on the oppositionbenches.
We rememberthe intellectualforce of hiscontributionineverystructure thathe served.
We will missthe wayhe swayed,cajoledandpersuadedall of uswithhisrichand boomingvoice,his
charmingwords,hiscleverturnof phrase andhiswonderful senseof humour.
We rememberaleaderof substantial stature whoengagedeveryonewithrespectanddignity.
To the Mthembufamily,itcouldnothave beeneasy.
We knowthathe wasopenabout the tragediesthatbefellthe familywhenhisdaughterpassedaway
and whenhe losthismother.
In doingsohe wasshowingsolidaritywitheveryotherSouthAfricanman,womanandchildwho had
gone throughpainor hardship.
He wassayingto us: I knowwhatit feelslike.Ihave beenthroughittoo.Iam withyou,and you donot
needtofeel alone.
7. He tookus as the nationintohisconfidence,andhe permittedusinhisprivate space toshare inhis
sorrow.
Andtoday,we the people of SouthAfricamournwithyouasan extendedfamily,forhe wasnotjustour
leader.We claimhimtooas our familymemberasourbrother.
As we payhomage to himtoday,letus rememberhimforwhathe was,a servantleaderwholovedthe
people of thisgreatland,andput themabove love of party,of leader,andof self.
It isnot enoughtoeulogise ourdepartedcomrade.
We mustcomplete whathe wasnot able tofinishinhislifetime:the cause of renewing andrebuilding
hisbelovedmovement,of restoringthe nation’sfaithinthisgovernment,andof buildinganethical
state that is ledbymenand womenof honour,of principle andof conviction.
MinisterMthembuwasa kindand gentle soul,butwhenitcame tocorruption,to self-servingleadership
and to brazenabuse of power,youwouldsee anotherside tohim.
He wasneverdeceivedbythe false smilesandemptypromisesof those whosoughttoenrich
themselvesatthe expenseof the poorandthe weak.
He calledthemout,andhe didn’tcare if theywere more powerful thanhe was.
He riskedhislife forthe liberationof ourcountryanddespairedaswe stumbledandaswe lostour way.
It isthe greatesttragedytohave losthim, particularlyatthistime,aswe strive toreturnto a path of
integrity,of selflessservice andof transformation.
8. Andyetwe donot despair.
We mayhave losthis principledstridentvoice,buthisspiritlivesoninthe countlessyoungmenand
womenthathe mentoredandtrainedoverthe years.
Many have gone on to occupyvaluedpositionswithinsociety.
His spiritandworkwill live on.
Overthe past fewdaysI have beenheartenedbythe numberof peoplewhohave toldme of the role
Mvelase playednotjustintheircareers,butininstillinginthemwhatittrulymeansto be a public
servant.
Thishas not beenadifficulttime;ithasbeenatime of great difficulty.
It isa reminderof justwhata multifacetedpersonalityhe was.
He lovedbeingamongstpeople,butat the same time enjoyedsolitude andintrospection.
He wasa leaderwhounderstoodthe powerof collective leadership,of discipline andof forgingunity.
He wasgentle,butcouldbe firmand uncompromisingwhenthe occasiondemanded.
He wasa manof the people andforthe people.
He stoodfor them,he workedforthem,andhe measuredhislife byhow loyallyhe servedthem.
9. It isbecause he didnot forgethisrootsand the people he committedtoserve whenhe ascendedthe
ranks to highoffice,that hisplace intheirmindsandheartsisforeverassured.
To Mvelases,ourheartsgo outto you as yougo throughthe grief of a lossso overwhelming.
On behalf of the governmentandthe peopleof SouthAfricaIexpressourdeepestsympathiesand
condolencesonyourgreatloss.
As youwalkthroughthisdifficultdarkvalley,IwishthatGod maygrant you the strengthto go through
your bereavementandleave youonlywiththe cherishedmemoryof ourbrotherandfriend,Jackson
Mthembu.
It ismy wishthat youare consoledbythe knowledge thatthe formidable legacyof yourhusband,father
and brotherliveson.
His courage,hiscompassionandhisservice tothe people of SouthAfricawill remainalightthat
brightensourdarkestday.
As we layhimto rest,may itbe that othersstepforwardtofollow inhisfootstepsandtake uphisspear.
May we toospeakfor those whocannotspeakfor themselves.
May we toogive comfortto those inneed,especiallyatthistime of hardship.
May we tooput love of countrybefore love of self.
May we be loversof truth,and hatersof injustice,falsehoodanddisunity.
10. May we foreverstandonthe side of right,not forthe sake of expediency,butonaccountof conviction.
May we,like ourdepartedleader,regardservice toourcountryas the highestcalling,anddosowith
humilityandcourage.
JacksonMthembuwas one of our nation’sheroes,one of ourfinestpublicservantsandone of our
greatestpatriots.
I wouldlike tothankall our healthworkers, doctors,nursesandotherhealthworkerswholookedafter
JacksonMthembuduringhisbattle withCOVID-19.Youdidthe bestyoucould.
I wouldalsolike tothankthe staff,includingthe DeputyMinisterSiweyainthe Presidency,forall the
supporttheygave MinisterMthembuinexecutinghistaskinservice tothe people of SouthAfrica
My sisterThembi,Iwishyouandthe childrenfindpeace inyourhearts,asyougo through thisvery
difficulttime.Ialsowishthatyouremainwitha memorythat yourhusband,apartfrom beingaloving
husbandandfather,livedhislife foryouandthe people of SouthAfrica.Allow histogoand restin
peace.
He has runhis race
To Mvelase mygood friend,farewell mydearbrother,farewellmycomrade andfriend.
Ulala ngoxoloMvelase!
Restin peace.
I thankyou.
