Zuki, last born of my brother. You are my blood.
I saw that you raised your hand.
Not for a photo. Not for a title.
You raised your hand to run for Ward Councilor in Diepkloof. A very tough and volatile township.
And I do not need to tell you what that means. But I wish to explore significance and meaning of your stance.
YOU DID NOT COME WITH A DEGREE. YOU CAME WITH SCARS.
I am not too sure how far you went at school But You hold no PhD. You hold no Masters. Unlike some of us, you have never been to a university campus.
I stead, You come from the school of hard knocks. Life and struggle were your classrooms.
That school doesn’t give certificates. It gives calluses.
It teaches you at 5am when the taxi doesn’t come.
It teaches what happens when a man loses his job. And does not have enough to feed a family.
It teaches you when the grant is late.
It teaches you when you knock on 10 doors for a job and 10 doors close. Nobody answers except for empty pro ises.
And yet you are here. Still standing.
You are living proof that ‘active citizenry’ is not about academic qualifications.
It is about showing up. For your people.
It is about knowing the name of the gogo on the corner. And they know you too.
It is about knowing which streetlight has been out for 8 months. And you doing something about it.
It is about knowing that a PhD cannot unblock a drain, but a person who cares can.
Diepkloof doesn’t need another speech. Or people that boast about their qualifications. It needs a neighbor who is willing to be accountable.
That is you. You are the redefinition of a pathfinder der in the new struggle.
YOU CHOSE ACTION OVER TALK
Zuki, you were raised in a relatively politically conscious family. I know that for a fact.
Your father, Boss Cher was politically educated. Not from university courses.
Your gogo harbored ANC guerrillas. And she allowed her daughters to be members of the underground.
You could have taken that Fanonian knowledge you possess and used it to argue on Facebook.
You could have used your politocal network and brothers to get a job in an office and forget the street.
You could have stayed in EFF to push up the ranks to use your network to get tenders.
But you chose action. You question too much.
For the last decades, we have explored national issues. We agree that the community is condemned to what apartheid built: joblessness, poverty, crime, and corruption.
That is the inheritance. Broken houses, broken schools, broken trust. Defeated people.
You looked at that inheritance, at the failure of the liberation struggle, and said: “Not on my watch.”
Yes, something must be done. It is not enough to discuss the national question to identify the problem, especially over drinks. The power and solutions are in our hands.
So you became a volunteer. An activist.
Some Sundays you stand as a guard and protector of school property.
Think about that. Who would do that when his peers are all dressed up to indulge in drinking sprees.
While others sleep in, you stand outside a school that is not yours, protecting books and chairs that are not yours, for children who are not yours.
Why? Because you decided the future is yours too.
That is what leadership looks like before it has a badge.
YOU CHALLENGED POWER, SO POWER CALLED YOU A THREAT
As chairperson of the local Community Police Forum, you did the dangerous thing.
You asked the authorities to be at service of the people.
You didn’t shout. You didn’t burn tires. You were into the offices.
You asked questions. You kept minutes. You followed up.
“Where is the patrol van?”
“Why did that case disappear?”
“Who is protecting the old people at night?”
“Why is that criminal still in the streets?”
And for that, you are perceived as a threat and marginalized by some people in authority. The Madlanga Commission has televised the collaboration and corruption. We know.
Of course you are perceived to be a threat.
Corrupt leaders and organizations that have betrayed the aspirations of the people do not like mirrors.
And you, Zuki, are a mirror. You challenge and question.
You reflect back what they don’t want to see: that the work is not being done.
They want councilors who nod.
You are a councilor who asks.
They want a ward that is quiet.
You are a ward that wants answers.
That is why they push you to the side.
Because people who serve scare people who rule.
4THIS RUN IS ABOUT RECLAIMING POWER
I dont quite know who sponsors your campaign. You may be accused of being a pooitical pawn. But your campaign is not about you getting a seat. Getting a driver and security, if correct.
This campaign marks a deep commitment to help people reclaim their power.
Power to say no to a contractor who does a bad job and disappears.
Power to say no to a leader who only comes at election time. And we have seen those over the last 33 years of ANC and DA misgovernance.
Power to say: “This ward belongs to us, not to a party, not to a tender.”
For too long people in Diepkloof have been told:
“Wait for us.”
“We will deliver.”
“Trust the process.”
And 33 years later the process has delivered potholes and empty promises.
You are saying something different:
“Let’s do it ourselves. Let’s watch. Let’s demand. Let’s build.” The people must DEMAND accountability.
That is what it means to oust corruption. Not with slogans. With presence.
THE COST, AND WHY YOU PAY IT ANYWAY
I won’t lie to you, Zuki. It will be hard.
They will call you names.
They will say you have no qualification.
They will leave you out of meetings.
They will spread stories because a man who cannot be bought is dangerous.
They will say you are spy who has been bought to destroy the socalled liberation heritage.
But you remain focused and dedicated to be an agent of the change that you want to see.
That is rare.
Most people want change until change asks them to sacrifice a Sunday.
Most people want change until change asks them to stand alone in a meeting.
Many want change but prefer far into the night drinking sessions.
Many want change but do not turn up at the polls.
You are still standing.
- WHAT DIEPKLOOF GETS IF YOU WIN
If Diepkloof chooses you, here is what they get:
They get a councilor who knows the difference between a report and a result.
They get a councilor who will sit in a dirty drain with the workers until it’s fixed.
They get a councilor who will answer his phone on a Saturday when the water is off.
They get a councilor who will say “I don’t know” instead of lying.
They get a councilor who will remember that he was once a volunteer, and so will treat volunteers like gold.
You will not fix 120 years in 5 years.
But you will prove that one person can make the machine move an inch.
And one inch, repeated, becomes a road.
RAISE YOUR HAND AGAIN
Zuki, thank you for raising your hand. This is what a Gambu man does. We ask difficult questions. We take a stand.
Thank you for refusing to believe the lie that only people with degrees can lead.
Thank you for refusing to believe the lie that someone else will do it.
Thank you for refusing to become bitter even when you are marginalized.
Thank you for seeing the betrayal
Diepkloof has been judged by its outside for too long.
Now it needs to be judged by the content of its character.
And your character is showing up.
So keep guarding the schools on Sundays.
Keep chairing that CPF meeting even when only 3 people come.
Keep knocking on doors. Keep using your political knowledge for action.
The ancestors who built Diepkloof with their hands are watching. I think your grandma and father proud of you.
The children who walk past that school are watching.
And we are watching.
You are not running to become important, a VVIP with body guards in a black car.
You are running because you already are important to the people you serve.
Raise your hand again on voting day, Diepkloof.
And let’s see what happens when a man from the school of hard knocks is given the chalk.
Gamb’Omhle, you are not alone. We are with you. We hope the people will show up for themselves.
