Mr Speaker, I was elected in the same year as the hon Mike Ellis. Those days we were on opposite sides and being a backbencher of the then ruling party under a very strong Whippery, we were encouraged not to make friends with the opposition Members of Parliament. [Laughter.]
We, as young MPs, were treated like mushrooms: We were constantly kept in the dark and fed with the wrong stuff! [Laughter.] In those dark days, hon Mike Ellis made an impression on us. As an open-minded, concerned South African, he was a fair and popular opposition MP and gave us all hope.
It was the former leader of the opposition, Sir De Villiers Graaff, who, after one of his young newly elected MPs asked him, "I don't understand politics, sir. Why are you so friendly with the ruling MPs? Are they not the enemy?", replied, "You don't understand politics, my son. Those sitting opposite you are your opponents and those sitting next to you are your enemies." [Laughter.] [Applause.]
Can I correct the hon Leader of the Opposition; it was not Tony Leon, but Sir Winston Churchill who said, "If you want a friend in politics, get yourself a dog". I want to tell Mike Ellis that I am getting myself a dog and I will call it Mike. [Laughter.]
So, hon Mike Ellis, I cannot vouch as to how many enemies you had in your own ranks, but be assured, the majority of this House are your friends. [Applause.] Let me add: a friendship well deserved - we shall miss you. We shall miss you every time when you are not here to stand up and take a point of order or to try and ask a question or make a joke about your friends on the opposite side, especially to hon Blade Nzimande. [Applause.]
Let me say goodbye with a quote from Madiba:
A good head and a good heart are always a formidable combination.
And you've got both!
Let me say also say thank you to the Deputy Chief Whip of the ANC; I think his speech was exceptional and a fine tribute. [Applause.]
Let me also conclude with the Irish proverb: May the roof of your house, Mike Ellis, never fall in and those within never fall out.
Hamba kahle. [Go well.]
Mooiloop, ons gaan jou mis, en jy vir ons. [Go well; we will miss you and you will miss us.]