Deputy Speaker, on this sad day I rise to express the sincere condolences of Cope to the family and the loved ones of the late hon Ntsiki Magazi, and also to the ANC as an organisation for losing a dedicated and devoted Member of Parliament.
Conflicting ideas and interests in policies between the governing party and opposition parties are inherent to political life. This could lead to conflict in debates and beyond and also to the harbouring of judgmental opinions of one another. However, this was never true for hon Ntsiki Magazi. She was a lovely person who took everybody as a person and as a friend.
Some of our Cope Members of Parliament who are here today served with her in ANC structures before and all of them have so many good memories of their interactions with her. It was a real privilege for me to work closely with her in the Portfolio Committee on Communications since the beginning of the Fourth Parliament. Her institutional memory and insight into the complex world of communications technology and related challenges assisted the committee in general and me in particular.
As a mature and very accomplished politician, she could stand up for her cause and fought fearlessly to get her point across. Yet her dignified manner and lovely smile earned her the respect of all who came into contact with her. Outside of the political arena, hon Magazi was a great colleague, a friend and a fun person to be with.
I shall never forget how the two of us, after a long and tedious day of highly technical submissions and discussions that overwhelmed us on the study tour to Brazil last year, discovered a shared urge for retail therapy in one of the malls in the Brazil capital. We shopped our way through one of the malls in a few hours of delightful fellowship and laughter. Eventually, we rewarded ourselves and our tired feet with some of Brazil's famous footwear. It was lovely to come back to Parliament and spot each other wearing the Brazilian footwear.
Now she is no longer with us and all of us are really saddened because we were not prepared for this. We visited her in hospital but it just came too soon. However, our memories and our love for her will never pass on. We pray that her loved ones will find solace in the knowledge that she was a wonderful person who made a great contribution, not only to our beloved country but also to the many people whose lives she touched here in Parliament, as well as in her community. Hambakahle Ntsiki. [Go well, Ntsiki.] We will surely miss you. [Applause.]