Mr Speaker, we wish to say that we have not come here today to praise the hon Mavis Matladi, but to be part of the motion of condolence for her. May her soul rest in peace. I feel honoured that the ANC, the ruling party in the Republic of South Africa, the oldest liberation movement in Africa, requested me to participate in this motion of condolence for the hon Mavis Ntebaleng Matladi, the leader of the UCDP, who passed away on 2 December 2011. She was buried on 9 December 2011 at Lehurutshe and her funeral service was held at the Lehurutshe Civic Centre. I was present at that funeral.
In the run-up to the last local government election, we worked against each other as competing parties at the Ramotshere Moiloa Local Municipality. I visited the UCDP offices in Zeerust, which are not far from the ANC offices, with the aim of challenging the UCDP in all wards. Unfortunately, I could not find her at the offices. Later on, I went to her house in Lehurutshe township, commonly known as Welgedacht, and found the gate open. I could not enter the premises because her well-trained dogs were there and fighting. [Laughter.] I met her only after the elections, in which the ANC had won all the wards in that municipality.
The hon Mavis Ntebaleng Matladi was a rising star, not only in the politics of the UCDP or the politics of South Africa, but also in the politics of the continent of Africa and the world at large. As a member of the National Assembly of the Parliament of the Republic of South Africa, she was one of the five members deployed to represent South Africa at the Pan-African Parliament, where she was elected president of the Women's Caucus. Though the UCDP is an opposition party, both in the National Assembly and in the North West province, the style of debate that has been left to the UCDP by the hon Matladi is that of not opposing for the sake of opposing, but using their platform to make the ruling party see the other side of the coin before making decisions. That is effective opposition-party activity. We call on the UCDP and all other parties in this House to continue recognising her style.
The hon Mavis Matladi was an effective, influential and smart political debater. I never gave up recruiting her to the ANC. I regret that she left us before I could win that battle. However, she went to join those South African leaders whose sweat, blood and spirit continue to nourish the freedom of both South Africa and Africans throughout our beloved continent. The ANC, as the ruling party in the Republic of South Africa wishes that you, hon Mavis Ntebaleng Matladi, rest in peace. We send our deepest condolences to the families of Matladi and Setou, as well as to the UCDP. I thank you. [Applause.]