Speaker, I move without notice:
That the House -
1) notes with deep sadness the death on 26 February 2011 at the age of 38 of former ANC Member of Parliament, Adv Mamaroba Johannes Malahlela, fondly known among his comrades and friends as "Joe";
2) remembers that Joe joined Parliament in 2002, when he was 29 years old, and participated in various parliamentary portfolio committees, including those on Communications, Justice and Constitutional Development, Foreign Affairs and Finance and at the time of his death was a commissioner at the Public Service Commission;
3) further remembers that Adv Malahlela cut his political teeth in the 1980s through student and youth activism in Mankweng, Limpopo, where he was born, and served as a member of the Mankweng Youth Congress and branch chairperson of the ANC Youth League in Ga-Dikgale, and at the University of the North, and while studying law served in the student representative council in various positions, including that of treasurer-general, and also served as a member of the ANCYL Capricorn Regional Executive Committee and an ex officio member of the executive committee in the same region;
4) recognises that Adv Malahlela was a gifted, hardworking, friendly and humble servant of the people who never shied away from any task, no matter how challenging or difficult it was; and
5) conveys its heartfelt condolences and sympathy to his family, friends, comrades and colleagues.
Thank you.
Mr Speaker, I certainly do not claim to have known Adv Malahlela particularly well. Our paths seldom crossed in Parliament and we never served on the same committees. Nevertheless, I do remember him as a keen and enthusiastic young man who, as the motion indicates, served in a number of different portfolios during his years as a member of this House. As we know, he arrived here as a young man of 29, following a very successful academic career and having been extremely active in the ANC Youth League, where, as the motion indicates, he cut his political teeth in the early 1980s.
He was very active in this area and within his alma mater, the University of the North. There can be little doubt that as a result of these experiences he was well prepared for the rigours of Parliament when he arrived here in November 2002. He often spoke on youth matters in Parliament and certainly was very passionate about the subject. Indeed, he was a passionate young man in many respects and that same passion showed in his speeches here in this House.
While I may not have agreed with him on all he said, I do not doubt the sincerity with which he said it. I say this because, not having known him particularly well, I took the trouble to read some of the speeches he made in this House between 2002 and 2009. They were indeed fascinating in what they revealed about him.
He certainly was an eloquent young man, and he used his eloquence to praise the things he loved. He was extremely proud of his parents, background, province and university. He was well aware of the history of his party, the ANC, and what it had fought for all those years. All of this, Mr Speaker, was made very clear in all he said in this House. I can well accept the words of the motion read out by the Deputy Chief Whip of the ANC:
Joe Malahlela was a gifted, hardworking, friendly and humble servant of the people.
Consequently, Mr Speaker, although I did not know him well, I stand here today and say that without a shadow of a doubt his death, at such an early stage of his life, is indeed a loss to his party and to the country. On behalf of the DA, I offer my condolences to his family and friends, to those he worked with, both here in Parliament and in the Public Service Commission, and in particular to his party, the ANC, whom he served as a very loyal servant indeed. Thank you.
Mohl Sefepisegolo, mant?u ao a t?wago go Cope mabapi le lehu la Mohl Malahlela ke gore, re kwele bohloko kudu. Ke dumela gore re kwele bohloko bjo bo tsenelet?ego, e bile phathi ya gagwe ANC, re lla le lena.
Re le ba Cope, se ke nyakago go se bont?ha bagage?o ke gore mo kontinenteng ya rena ya Afrika, re ba dimilione t?e 850 ge eba ke e bea gabotse; ge o bapet?a le bo China le India bao ba tshet?ego bilione. Bjale ka a mangwe mant?u ke ra gore ge go hlokofala lesogana leo e lego gore mo mmeleng wa lona go sa nale peu, mo Afrika re tlo fihlelela bjang dipalopalo t?a rena.
Ka Sepedi, ge go hlokofet?e motho yo a lekanago le nna, ga go babe ka kudu ka gore mo go nna peu e fedile. Mo go masogana le dikgarebe peu e sa le gona. Ga ke re gore bakgalabje le bakgekolo ba hlokofale. Fela se ke se bont?hago ke gore ke dumela gore kamoka ga rena, merafong kamoka, ge go hlokofet?e kgarebe goba lesogana, re kwa bohloko ka kudu. Se e lego nnete ke gore ga re sa na peu. Ke mo go botse gore bana ba rena ba phele, ba tle ba belege bana gore mo Afrika re kgone go fihlelela bilione e tee ya set?haba. Malahlela e be e le lesogana la hlompho. O be a swana le nna ge ke sa gola. E be e le ngwana, a hlompha batho ka tshwanelo. Ka gona bengbaka re kwa bohloko ka moka ga rena. Bohloko ga bo kwewe ke batswadi feela, fela le rena ka moka ga rena re a amega. Se ke nyakago go se bont?ha ke gore re le ba Cope bagage?o re re "Moya wa gagwe a o robale ka khut?o; moya wa gagwe a o robale ka khut?o; moya wa gagwe a o robale ka khut?o"! Modimo a mo lebalele melato ya gagwe. Ke a leboga. [Legofsi.] (Translation of Sepedi speech follows.)
[Mr L J TOLO: Hon Chief Whip, Cope members are saddened by the death of Mr Malahlela. We would also like to convey our heartfelt condolences to the ANC, the political party to which he belonged.
I would like to indicate as a member of Cope that our continent has a population of about 850 million as compared to China and India with a population of more than a billion. How will the African population increase when we are losing people at as young an age as this?
In my culture, the death of a young person affects people more than that of someone my age. The main reason behind that is because at my age I can no longer bear children. I do not mean that the elderly people have to die. I believe that the death of a young person affects everyone. We do not want our children to die young, but to live long lives and have children of their own. The number of the African population will then rise to a billion.
Mr Malahlela was a respectful young man, like I was when I was still young. He respected all the people. His death does not affect only his family, but all of us. May his soul rest in peace; may his soul rest in peace; may his soul rest in peace! May God forgive him all of his sins. Thank you. [Applause.]]
Mr Speaker and the honourable House, the IFP wishes to convey its sincere and heartfelt condolences to the family, friends and colleagues of the late Adv Mamaroba Johannes "Joe" Malahlela, who died in a car accident in February this year.
It is always sad when a talented person, who still has so much to give his family and his country, passes on. Mr Malahlela is a prime example to the youth of this country of what one can achieve in life despite hardships and difficulty.
He had a distinguished career as a politician, preceded by his active involvement in many youth organisations, most notably the Mankweng Youth Congress. His versatility as a Member of Parliament made him suitable to serve on various portfolio committees, among them Communications, Justice and Constitutional Development, Foreign Affairs and Finance.
The IFP wishes to say to the family, friends and colleagues of the late Joe Malahlela that we know for certain that we never lose the people we love, even to death. They continue to participate in every act, thought and decision we make. Their lives leave an indelible imprint in our memories. We find comfort in knowing that our lives have been enriched by having shared their love.
Ulale ngoxolo, Joe. Ngiyathokoza. [Rest in peace, Joe. Thank you.]
Mr Speaker and hon members, we are gathered once more to undertake the sad duty of bidding farewell to a fellow Member of Parliament, the late Adv Mamaroba Johannes Malahlela, affectionately known as "Joe", who died on 26 February 2011. The UDM extends its heartfelt condolences to the late Adv Malahlela's family, friends and colleagues.
At times like these, it is only the love and support of family that can provide you comfort and only the remembrance of a life well lived that can provide consolation. We hope that this remembrance by his family and friends will include the late hon member's participation in this institution and also that his having been part of this democratic institution will give you some consolation. May his soul rest in peace. I thank you.
Mr Speaker, it is clear from these tributes that former Member of Parliament Adv Joe Malahlela was devoted to his country and serving his fellow man. It is particularly regrettable that Joe passed away so suddenly at the relatively young age of 38.
I had the honour of getting to know the hon Malahlela when I served on the Justice portfolio committee. He was a committed lawyer, firm and resolute in his commitment to extend access to justice to all, particularly to previously disadvantaged communities. And he loved to debate issues, as lawyers are wont to do. He had a passion for the issues that he was considering. He was also a gentleman and highly respected among his colleagues.
I remember that during the heated debate surrounding the future of the Scorpions, he had been tasked by the ANC to respond to the ACDP's submission and to put questions to me. Before I made my submission, he came to me and told me he had been tasked to put questions to me, but I need not worry because the questions would not be very difficult. Through such actions he was my brother and a very considerate colleague. We shared a lot of good times and even studied economics together - a whole new field for both of us as lawyers.
He was indeed, as the motion points out, "a gifted, hardworking, friendly and humble servant of the people". May I, on behalf of the ACDP, express our sincere condolences to brother Joe's family, friends and colleagues in the ANC. Our prayers are with you at this difficult time. I thank you.
Mr Speaker, the UCDP would like to convey its sincerest condolences to the family and friends of Joe Malahlela and to the African National Congress. His zeal for public service was displayed by the fact that he joined Parliament at the tender age of 29 and during the most challenging of times.
We appreciate his contributions to the Public Service Commission and further extend our condolences to his colleagues at the commission. May his soul rest in peace. Thank you.
Hon Speaker and members of the House, I rise here to pay homage to Comrade Joe Mamaroba Malahlela. I had known Comrade Joe Malahlela for the past 16 years, having met him at the then University of the North, where we were both students.
Comrade Joe, as he was called by comrades, used to refer to himself as Matshikitshela. He was a young, organic intellectual who, upon arrival at the University of the North, joined the SA Communist Party and participated in the party's school, where he was imbued with the fundamental ideas of Marxist-Leninism. It was during that era that he joined the South African Students' Congress, Sasco, where he was a revolutionary activist.
For many years, this young intellectual followed in the footsteps of the late Castro Pilusa, and the late comrades Peter Mokaba and Frans Mohlala. These were the people who inspired him to form part of the Mankweng Youth Congress, which he joined in 1987 in order to fight for our liberation.
He was a man who, at a young age, was trained within the structures of MK, just before the cessation of the armed struggle. He was inspired by the ideal of a free country, in which black and white people could live together in harmony.
When he was a student at the University of the North, he served on its SRC. In 1996 he served as the head of its department of information and publicity, and was elected as the treasurer-general of the SRC the following year.
It was during those years that we got to understand the personality of this young leader of our people. As previous speakers have said, Comrade Joe was a very kind person. He was also a person who believed in the sanctity of thought. He believed that his ideas should be subjected to critical discourse and he was a person who was prepared to defend his own ideas.
When we were with him in the student movement, we got to understand the political literature of the ANC through some of the events that he organised for us.
Comrade Joe was also a singer. At all our events, whether those of the youth league or of Sasco, he would lead us in revolutionary songs that defined the tasks of our revolution during his lifetime.
He has completed a journey, the inevitable journey of all mankind. He completed it at the very prime of his life, when we believed we could still have expected a great contribution from Comrade Joe.
Before he passed on, he served on the Public Service Commission. His work in that commission was reflected in the sort of reports that were beginning to emerge from the institution. He was a person who understood that the Public Service Commission's role was to advance and deepen the transformation of the Public Service; to ensure that there was accountability on the part of our country's public servants; to ensure that we elevate the standard of openness, of transparency and of accountability, and also to advance our fight against corruption.
The ANC would like to express its profound condolences to the Malahlela family, to the entire youth movement in the country, to the student movement and to the community of Mankweng and Ga-Dikgale in particular. We have lost a true revolutionary. May his soul rest in peace. Thank you.
Debate concluded.
Motion agreed to.