President Thabo Mbeki's Letter To DP Paul Mashatile Re: National Assembly Votes et al.: A Commentary

"Men at some time are masters of their fates. / The fault, dear Brutus, is not in our stars, / But in ourselves, that we are underlings” (Julius Caesar, Act I, Scene III L. 139–141).

This famous quote by Elizabethan playwright William Shakespeare, although written possibly between 1599 and 1600 and loosely translated to mean that 'we are responsible for our own actions and not fate', stands as relevant in today's politics and life as it did centuries ago. 

Today, the wedge between the African National Congress (ANC) and the people has grown exponentially, not because of fate but simply due to the former's own actions. This, I believe, is the raison d'etre of the President's letter to the Deputy President of both the ANC and the Republic of South Africa, Paul Mashatile. 

Before the actual contents of the 17-pages long letter could be dissected, there was a lot of hullabaloo surrounding its recipient or rather why it seemed to bypass the Secretary General (SG) of the Movement, Fikile Mbalula as well as its credibility as letters penned by the former President are normally adorned with the 'Thabo Mbeki Foundation' logo. 

I'm not too sure why this was in question as the document contains the former President's signature at the bottom in physical ink and the Foundation did not distance itself but the ANC SG confirmed its credibility a few hours after its release and further stated that the party would engage on its contents and accordingly respond to the matters raised. 

Whilst reading the document, I was reminded of the frustration by Adv. Paul Hoffman & his team during the Seriti Commission over how the President claimed he 'could not remember events that happened then because so many years have passed' and yet, in 2023, he's quoting documents he & the ANC prepared in 1994 and he quotes exactly which Committees it was for & what was discussed in said Committees. I see why the Advocate was sweating and foaming at the mouth profusely.

Anyway, it's 7 years later and the Seriti Commission has long released its 737-pages long report stating it could not find any trace of corruption or irregularities in the government's acquisition or procurement of strategic defence arms in 1999 which subsequently absolved the then President of any wrongdoing. 

Fast forward to the 29th of March 2023 and the former President has said something that he's been always preaching - the ANC is going to the dogs and no one seems willing to do anything about it. The President has not said anything he has never said before nor anything that the general public does not go up in arms about: those elected to serve the population are, at best, watching the country deteriorate and at worst, acting as catalysts for the very deterioration. 

I know this because the Thabo Mbeki School of Public and International Affairs together with the University of South Africa (UNISA), about two weeks ago, held a "Conversation with President Thabo Mbeki" and these are the common questions coming from the audience, they were most curious about what he made of the suspended Public Protector's interim report, the Phala Phala "matter" as well as Andre de Ruyter's exit interview where he alleged the corruption and mismanagement at Eskom is both systematic and intentional.

He addressed all these pressing questions that I believe are a representation of what is in the minds of the average person in the metropolitans, townships, villages and so on. Although there is nothing new or surprising in the letter, apart from why it is directed to this particular DP when so many ANC MPs also often hold and even express the view or belief that having an opposition in Parliament boils down to opposing whatever motions they bring forth and countering whatever beliefs they share whilst abusing Parliamentary Processes.

I'm glad he brought up this issue because the Opposition itself is not absolved of this belief, after all, the only thing they and the ANC have in common is opposing each other in Parliament, court and wherever else the grounds permit. What this often translates to is a waste of state resources and the misuse of time which ought to be used to provide 'A Better Life For All' in the 'One Nation. One Future' they both envision. 

I do not think it was a personal attack or maybe we won't know much as the former DP was not in the spotlight as much which did not give room for criticism. We could also be delusionally optimistic and say perhaps it is that he has that much faith in the man, that he thinks he could steer the ship a different way provided he corrects these minor mishaps. 

This letter stands as a reminder not only to Mashatile and those in power but also to the hundreds of thousands of card-carrying ANC members at grassroots levels of, inter alia, the hurdles the Party has had to overcome before even sitting at the CODESA negotiation table as well as the promise made to South Africa that "The People Shall Govern".

It is not unsurprising that the President would publicly voice out his concerns about all this criminality that is rampant in the ANC and this is due to a number of reasons; he has dedicated his entire life to the Movement; the very same Movement that he has given so much of his time and resources has cut his tenure short on unfounded claims therefore why should others not be held to the same standard and lastly and probably most importantly, he now stands as an ANC elder providing a fountain of wisdom that the Party desperately needs 15 years post his presidency.