*A MEMORIAL LECTURE OF THE FIRST COSAS PRESIDENT COMRADE EPHRAIM MOGALE* * *
*Khaye Nkwanyana Deputy National Secretary of the Young Communist League.* *22 May 209* *“ The re-establishment of the Young Communist League, due to be launched in December, must be used to talk about the history and roles played by young communists such the one played by Ephraim Mogale in the student movement. This YCL must pay special attention to the state of progressive students organizations which are currently facing massive challenges which, no doubt, Ephraim Mogale had a concern about. Surely, he would have been part of the efforts to overcome these challenges drawing deep from his days as a student and a youth leader in the 1980’s*” ( SACP General Secretary Blade Nzimande paying tribute at the Funeral of Ephraim Mogale, , 08 June 2003) The Young Communist League joins COSAS, SACP and ANC in this august Memorial Lecture of the first President of COSAS, the late comrade Ephraim Mogale. Memories of comrade Mogale are as fresh as though he has just left us yesterday. As comrade Lulu Johnson, another COSAS former President pays tribute to him in his poem called “*Death – From time Immemorial” * “… The real you, Death? The stoppage of a heart beat, My blood stops circulation, My brain stop thinking, My body gets motionless, I become cold! >From time immemorial. We hope that whilst he departed from the World of the living, his spirit and teachings are a living pedigree for all those he touched their lives will forever be premised on a solid bedrock. This year being the 30th Anniversary of COSAS since its formation in 1979, it therefore augurs well that we cast our eyes back, and convene those who were part of that history making in our country to impart their flashbacks about the experiences of that time. This should also mean relating the extent of their commitment to the revolution against apartheid that was fought in all terrains including in our schools. This is important for us to be privileged with that information from many stalwarts who are a product of this student formation. As we make a cursory glance of many leaders of today who are the product of COSAS that today leads not only the ANC but the country in government, you arrive into one conclusion that COSAS indeed belongs to the treasured area of our history to South Africa. COSAS remain relevant to the post apartheid dispensation as it were before then. So long as education in Primary to High school is still commodified, as long as Learners in some provinces are still learning under trees, Learner Support material still arriving late and insufficient, as long as teacher –Learner ratio in black schools is still so huge, as long as rural and township schools are still without Libraries and Laboratories and as long as mathematics and science teachers are insufficient in black schools rural areas being the hardest hit, therefore there is a case for COSAS to exist to champion these systemic challenges in the system. Our task within the PYA is to commit ourselves even more to support and revive structures of COSAS. This should mean investing both human and capital resources to make it strong as it in turn makes the PYA strong by virtue of being members of ANCYL, YCL and SASCO in their tertiary times. Comrade Ephraim Mogale, the Late, President of COSAS, SACP Mpumalanga Chairperson, ANC PEC member and a member of the Legislature was a working alliance. He understood that the real freedom cannot be realized without the heightening the struggle against capitalism. He appreciated that as we are seized with the details of social transformation under the ANC led government within the framework of the NDR that this cannot be realized in a class charged society – hence his commitment to Socialism. We gathered here very boosted by the ANC victory. As we congratulates all the appointed Cabinet members, we warn that this five years will not be characterized by any indecisiveness, indiscretion and inaction. The masses cannot wait that longer for change. We will hold these comrades accountable to the commitments in the manifesto. No one would say tomorrow it is impossible to implement what is on the manifesto. That comrade will have to gracefully resign as a Minister. We need activism in that Cabinet! These elections proved that the centrality of the alliance in this revolution cannot be wished away. We dealt with little-born baby – COPE eve in Eastern Cape where it claimed as its support base. The little they received in the National Assembly will vanish in 2014. The DA whilst winning Western Cape but received less than it expected. Even that isolated “Boys Choir government” with a white lady conductor is going to have a tough time from us. We are not going to allow DA to have nice ride in that province, that ANC province! The YCL supports the COSATU engagement in Western Cape through such institutions as Equality Court and Gender Equality Commission to foster that government to comply with gender parity. Gender parity is not an ANC and alliance principle but a universal principle in modern democracies. To that degree, the YCL still awaits for the apology of Helen Zille to the President of the Republic without reservation. We are happy that such insults disrespect and slander to want to agree with the DA leader in National Parliament Antholl Trollip that President Zuma deserves respect irrespective of party politics. We are not going to reconcile with Zille, an individual, before she apologize to the President. as we celebrates the 30th anniversary of COSAS and the tenure of President Ephraim Mogale as a student leader, poor students in UNISA are told by Barney Pityana that they will not write exams because they cannot afford the entire tuition. Indeed this is a setback to the miles since 1994 in the education struggle. This is a self-proclaiming former freedom fighter that was in exile whose mind is dirtied with neo liberal white standards of the pre 1994. UNISA by standards is collapsing under his stewardship as a black administrator. This is an indictment to black Vice Chancellors who have demonstrated high-level tenacity in their management of Institutions of Higher Learning. We are calling for his voluntary resignation before more damage is done. He Young Communist League has been watching with greater dismay the circus around Judge John Hlophe. From the inception, there is little doubt that the drive against Hlophe by two Constitutional Judges, Nkabinde and Jaftha was political. The JSC’s conduct now to continue with the hearing in the absence of the accused despite reasons put forth of sickness is not only constituting unfair Disciplinary process but it smack of a mad rush to conclude on pre-determined decision about Hlophe. This tendency of making mockery about Justice and the Bench itself must be stopped. We are calling for the Minister of Justice, Jeff Hadebe, to intervene by taking away the process from the current JSC and find other avenues to deal with the issue in order to protect the integrity of the Judiciary in this country. The Young Communist League extends once more greater gratitude to the contribution made by comrade Mogale, as did many of his same generation, in the student movement that has moulded so many within the revolutionary fold in this country. We thank him for the post 1994 contribution in building this country under the ANC led government as a leader of the alliance but also as a leader of government. If there is any monument we were to build in his honour, is to keep alliance strong and purge all of those charlatans who still harbour anti-alliance tendencies, they must be annihilated! Thank you. --~--~---------~--~----~------------~-------~--~----~ You are subscribed. This footer can help you. Please POST your comments to [email protected] or reply to this message. You can visit the group WEB SITE at http://groups.google.com/group/yclsa-eom-forum for different delivery options, pages, files and membership. To UNSUBSCRIBE, please email [email protected] . 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