MAMPHELA RAMPHELE
MAMPHELA Ramphele’s announcement yesterday about her political future was a bit like being served a starter when one is ravishingly hungry and wanting to proceed straight to the main course.
Following weeks of speculation, many people expected her to announce the formation of a political party. Instead, the world-renowned anti-apartheid activist unveiled what looks like a social movement, with intentions to transform it into a political party. The movement will, for now, be called Agang.
Not an awful lot is known about it at this stage. Speaking from Constitution Hill, she said one aim was to declare war on corruption: “Corruption is theft. It steals textbooks from our schoolchildren; it steals drugs from sick people. It steals social grants from poor people and children, it robs citizens of hope and destroys peace.”
But a lot remains unclear about this new entrant onto our political landscape. We still do not know what its policies are. Also how it will be different from the DA, the Congress of the People and the other opposition parties.
Ramphele says she plans to spend the next few months consulting with South Africans before taking the movement to the next level – forming a political party to contest next year’s national general elections.
This newspaper welcomes her decision to enter active politics. We have featured Ramphele on our pages dating back to the darkest days of apartheid when she, Steve Biko and other young activists formed the Black Consciousness Movement.
She is respected not only as an activist, but as an academic and a businesswoman. She has served at the highest level nationally and internationally, as the first black and woman vice-chancellor of the University of Cape Town, and as managing director of the World Bank.
However, while she comes with impeccable credentials – something in short supply in our current political milieu – there is a danger to viewing any individual as a saviour. Indeed, Ramphele said so herself: “I am no messiah.”
She added: “I, however, feel called to lead the efforts of many South Africans who increasingly fear we are missing too many opportunities to become that which we have the potential to become – a great society.”
And on that score she is correct. We do have great potential and we are missing opportunities. But Ramphele is just one on a long list of individuals who want to make a difference. Much of what she said yesterday has been heard before. Her criticism of the ANC and government, though justified, is nothing new. While her entrance onto the political stage is to be welcomed it still behoves everyone of us, every opposition politician, every ruling party member and all of those in civil society to rise up and make ours a truly great society.
