The crushed politician is a rare phenomenon. Most of those dumped from office, whether by the electorate or their party, don’t easily reconcile to obscurity. Instead they nurse their grievances and start plotting a comeback.
Former president Thabo Mbeki appears to be an exception. When his party spitefully “recalled” him with just months of his term remaining, speculation was that this haughty man would respond to the humiliation by leading a political breakaway.
Instead, Mbeki swallowed his pride and donned the hair shirt of the disciplined, selfless cadre, serving at the whim of the African National Congress to which he had devoted his life since childhood. The self-destructive tendencies of the Congress of the People — which splintered from the ANC in protest at Mbeki’s sacking — no doubt confirmed to him the wisdom of choosing the low-profile, dutiful servant role.
Nevertheless, it must be a shock for Mbeki to experience how rapidly yesterday’s statesman can be discarded.
Take President Jacob Zuma’s dedication of the World Cup to former president Nelson Mandela. While Mandela’s charisma and the world-wide veneration in which he is held undoubtedly were crucial to securing the tournament, it was actually Mbeki’s administration that piloted the hosting campaign.
Not once, but twice. Mbeki poured millions of rands in government funding into the bid for the 2006 Cup — which went to Germany by a New Zealand whisker — and then into the successful 2010 bid. For that his reward is a programme footnote.
Mbeki possibly shrugs this off as a case of the prophet not being honoured in his own land. The prophesier of the African Renaissance, who always preferred the world stage to local footlights, will likely be more deeply wounded by the lack of international acknowledgment for his achievements.
Many thought Mbeki a shoo-in for the Ibrahim Prize, which celebrates excellence in African governance and leadership. It is awarded to national leaders who, in the carefully phrased words of the Mo Ibrahim Foundation, “have served their term in office within the limits set by the country’s Constitution” and left office in the past three years.
In other words, if you are one of Africa’s few big men who has behaved with a modicum of decency to your citizens and then exited voluntarily, you are set to for a pay-off of $5-million over 10 years and then $200 000 annually for life. Sure it’s a bribe, but consider it to be from the angels.
Previous prize laureates are Joaquim Chissano of Mozambique and Festus Mogae of Botswana. Mbeki was tipped to win in 2009 for his efforts to pull Africa into the mainstream of world politics, but the prize committee abruptly decided that there was no suitable candidate. This week the committee, which includes Mandela’s wife Graça Machel, announced that there was no 2010 winner either.
Mbeki’s efforts to raise Africa’s international profile were considerable. But it is difficult to see how the prize could go to a man who, among other domestic failures, sentenced an estimated 300 000 HIV-positive South Africans to premature graves because of his eccentric medical theories.
Meanwhile the internal exile of Mbeki continues. A fortnight ago Mbeki presented the inaugural address at his personal creation, the Thabo Mbeki African Leadership Institute at the University of SA. It was vintage Mbeki, an erudite exposition of how Africa is once more drifting to the periphery of global affairs.
Considering the occasion and that it was Mbeki’s first public address since his ousting, who would have thought it would merit only three newspaper reports? It did not even make it on to an SA Broadcasting Corporation news bulletin, once slavish purveyors of his every utterance.
Mbeki is truly yesterday’s man. For now. Growing disillusionment with Zuma may yet put a retrospective sheen on the Mbeki years.
Sitoliquido – We know only what was released to us by the NPA – the rest is pure conjecture & speculation. Never in the history of RSA jurisprudence has anyone fought as hard as JZ NOT to have his day in Court – why? All at gigantic expense to taxpayers! How was that stabilizing for the country? The current ANC leadership is not at all interested in the stability of RSA/ANC – had they been, they would never have “ousted” Mbeki – he was a couple of months off the end of his second term! How did that instill confidence and stability here and internationally? Destructive, malicious, self serving and vindictive! The ANC is in disarray because the leadership is concerned only about themselves and their collective egos and too many of them are immersed in obscene luxury and busy lining their pockets with State funds. There are a few good ones there thank God. The alliance is in bits because no one gives a damn about it – there is no respect, decency or dignity displayed and little integrity. If RSA and the ANC/Alliance get trampled underfoot in their efforts to destroy a perceived/imagined threat who cares? Not the current leadership of the ANC! If they cared about stability of RSA, they wouldn’t have allowed Malema to run around shouting his mouth off, insulting everyone and singing songs that amount to hate speech – he was only brought under control when he dared to defy JZ. This picture paints a thousand words!
Rose Morrow – I agree with many of the accusations that you make against the ANC. Too much corruption and all that, but Mbeki had to be recalled at teh time that it happened, otherwise there was a danger of him using the six months that he was left with to make decisions that would be hard to change and that would render impossible the carrying out of some of the resolutions of the new ANC leadership. I have already pointed out to the manner in which he was already undermining the newly elected leadership of the ANC. I also agree that Malema was allowed to go on for far too long before he was reigned in. It can be argued that the ANC lost the Western Cape, for instance, because of the likes of him. BUT I still stand by my assertion that there was more to the tapes – deeply compromising Mbeki – than was released to the public. I do not with to pursue discussion on this particular point any further. You stick to what you know and believe from the media and I shall stick to what I know from other credible sources and the media. I also still believe that although many ANC decisions and actions totally baffle the mind, the party still wants South Africa to be a successful democracy in Africa.
What’s the matter @Sitoliquido? Is @Rose Morrow winning the debate? Come on man, I thought you knew what you were talking about, or is it the nausiating blind loyalty to individuals like Zuma, whom some of you defend with everything (or nothing really) you’ve got? There is really no point in trying to defend the indefensible because honesty and the truth always prevails, except of course at the Polokwane conferences, where debates are won by howling and hackling.
Well done @Rose Morrow. These debates should be taking place in public but then again after the Vavi scare, the ruling crowed would victimise anyone telling the truth. I guess the only way now is to use your vote to make things right.
Thanks Isaac – The wheels of justice do slow but surely turn. Mbeki will be judged kindly by history in the end – I just hope and pray he is alive to enjoy it. In the meanwhile he can look at himself in the mirror without flinching and be friends with the man deep down inside. He knows he sacrificed and continues to sacrifice his life for the greater good of RSA and the ANC. He sacrificed his only child to the struggle and was and is an absolute credit to South Africa and Africa as a whole. I thank him for his unwavering support to the team that worked tirelessly to deliver the world cup to RSA and for the pride I always felt when I witnessed his incredible work ethic, intelligence, dignity, statesmanlike bearing and integrity. This he did at home, in Africa and wherever he went in the world. I am thankful to God!
Sitoliquido – Thanks for your responses. We agree to differ on some issues.
There is a saying that “when you look out there you will see what you are looking for”. Some white people feel in many ways they are getting a raw deal from this government, hence the rampant criticism of anything that is government. Most of us Africans our memory of leadership in government goes back to only 1994 unlike our white compatriots who can go back into the 1800′s. To us the course of building RSA started in 1990 and not when Van Riebeck landed on the Cape. We are thus inclined to look for all that is good and progressive in leadership, even when we are critical, at the back of our minds we know that things have got to work out because we don’t have a Europe or Australia to run to.
Thus in judging Mbeki’s record in government we have to start and establish “what we looking for in our President”. Some look for superficial attributes and I am not denying that some of these might achieve desired ends for politicians. As Africans we are inclined to look at general progress as a people politically and economically. Politically we have established a government and political and judicial institutions we need for sound governance. Economically we have also made Economically we have also made rapid progress in bringing the previously marginalised majority to become part of the mainstream economy. Our revolution is slow but progressive. We will transform RSA to serve all who live here.
Harry – All South Africans are getting a raw deal from the current ANC led government / ANC leadership. This has nothing whatsoever to do with whites or blacks – it has to do with corruption and crass materialism amongst too many of the current leadership in Cabinet/government/ANC. There are a few Ministers, like Kalema Mothlante, Praveen Gordhan, Dlamini Zuma, Aaron Motsoaledi – perhaps Trevor Manual – who are, above all, committed to the well being of the South African people, particularly the poor, to good governance, hard work and personal integrity. Up till Polokwane we had stability, dignity, decency and respect displayed between ANC Leadership/Cabinet Ministers/MPs – not so today – the egos are so huge one can imagine everyone tripping over them in the halls of government…… humility/service mentality is hardly to be found. Our economy and banking system is sound primarily because of the “three M’s” – Mbeki, Manual & Mboweni – and their think tank – the ship should remain steady under Gordhan’s watch! Certainly the economy is in a far stronger position than pre 1994. There is a good argument for a much stronger socialist bias because continuing with the massive disparity between rich and poor is obscene. We cannot put a price tag on what the World Cup (won under Mbeki’s government with Madiba magic) has done for the spirit of the country – long, long may it last. However, we need a stronger more stable leadership at the top. For the moment the ship is all but rudderless.
@Isaac Maweni – I have no idea from what angle you entered the discussion between Rose Morrow and me and if you took the time to read and understand my contribution before typing your response! Where do you see loyalty to Zuma and what I wrote? You’er either a very silly man or simply simple minded!
@Sitoliquido… No need to be defensive fellow citizen. I’m neither silly nor simple minded. I was just wondering aloud when I mentioned Zuma’s name. I did not intend to accuse you of being loyal to anyone, including Zuma. I just enjoyed the debate between the two of you and one can really learn a lot from the exchanges. I was just spurring you on that’s all.
@Sitoliquido….your fear of being associated with JZ has led you to miss your own very valid point, TM was and will always be a despot, a tyraniccal ruler who was naive and prone to critisism like all before him (Shaka, Mobutu, Matamzima, Mangope, Mugabe, Amin, etc and I left the Europeans purposely as we are talking African)
When great African leaders like Mandela opposed the genocide in Zimbwabwe, its not because they agreed with the unequal land issue, so mei bruu dont change your valid stance on TM.