Ramaphosa hails diamond-like Mama Winnie
Cyril Ramaphosa praised Winnie Madikizela-Mandela’s strength and compassion during her birthday celebration.
|||Cape Town - Known for her powerful speeches, Winnie Madikizela-Mandela took a different direction on Wednesday night as she addressed guests at her birthday celebration.
She had guests laughing through her “thank you” speech and started by thanking everyone, saying “because of my age I am allowed to say all protocol observed”.
“I have to keep myself to find out whether I am really still alive.”
Keeping to the speech, Madikizela-Mandela said that she was not going to take a dig at the political atmosphere in the country.
“I am not going to say anything about Marikana today... and I am not going to talk about the leadership in the country and the weakening rand.”
She shared several moments with some of her guests, including Julius Malema, when she said: “I hope now you will stop asking that people must bring things back.” Malema responded that they already have brought things back.
Before Madikizela-Mandela spoke, her daughter Zindzi Mandela shared stories about how much she had learnt from her.
“I want to say, I can’t imagine what I would have been without you. You held me up and gave me hope even when you knew tomorrow would be dreary. I am so highly motivated and driven and I am grateful to you for some of my genes I got from you.”
“You are the most amazing woman and I am so humbled and honoured to be your daughter.”
Deputy President Cyril Ramaphosa commented on Madikizela-Mandela’s beauty and her tenacity and ended his speech by reciting Maya Angelou’s poem Still I Rise.
“Many of us remember how constant she was, even when we read about her in the 1950s and 1960s, she was constant, and she remains constant. She has lived a beautiful life and went through victories and setbacks.”
Ramaphosa said that Madikizela-Mandela’s life demonstrated that women cannot be broken.
“She has been a diamond; built to last, built to shine and built never to break.”
He added that she has always been there for people outside of her political life and made examples of how she helped when there were disasters.
“Whenever people faced a challenge, Mama Winnie was among the first to arrive. She did not only give them words but she gave them hope and encouragement and also physical help.”
Ramaphosa thanked Madikizela-Mandela for her leadership and wished her many more years to come.
“From your life we know what it means to stand for justice and to be faithful and loyal, and that women can do it and have been able to play a role in shaping the history of our country. You remain the dream and hope of our future generations.”
“We thank you for your leadership and your suffering, and we will continue to honour you, love you and hold you in high regard.”
yolisa.tswanya@inl.co.za
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