The SACP General Secretary, Cde Blade Nzimande will on Saturday, 2nd December 2006, pay tribute to Cde Moses Mabhida, the late General Secretary of the South African Communist Party at the Harry Gwala Stadium in Pietermaritzburg.
Cde Mabhida, a former leader of SACTU and a distinguished leader of the ANC, has always been in the forefront of the struggle for the poor and the working class. Born and bred in Pietermaritzburg, a former herdboy whose schooling was at some stage interrupted. Cde Mabhida was introduced to Marxism by one of his teachers, the late Cde Harry Gwala. Cde Gwala further introduced him to trade union politics, a role he played till he was instructed to focus on the work of uMkhonto we Sizwe in exile in the early 1960s.
Elected General Secretary of the SACP after the passing away of Cde Moses Kotane in 1978, Cde Mabhida served the movement in various capacities as a member of the ANC NEC, the Revolutionary Council of the movement charged with directing all revolutionary work against the apartheid regime, and as leader of SACTU.
Indeed Cde Mabhida personified a united and revolutionary alliance of our people to bring apartheid down on it knees.
The SACP would like to extend its word of gratitude to the ANC led government in KwaZulu Natal, the government of Mozambique and the leadership of Frelimo for honouring the commitment made twenty years ago that Cde Mabhida’s remains will one day return home.
We also extend our thanks to the many people who came out in their numbers to pay homage to our late General Secretary on his trail back home.
As we honour Cde Mabhida, ours is to commit ourselves to deepening and defending our democracy and intensify the struggle for socialism.
Members of the press are invited to attend the reburial ceremony.
Issued by the SACP.
CONTACT:
Malesela Maleka
SACP Spokesperson
Tel: 011 339 3621
Fax: 011 339 4244
Cell: 082 226 1802
Email: Malesela@sacp.org.za