Motlanthe hails Zuma as a good example
2012-12-06 20:04
Mahikeng - A possible ANC leadership battle was forgotten
on Thursday as Deputy President Kgalema Motlanthe praised President Jacob Zuma
as a good example of a leader.
"President Jacob Zuma's life is exemplary of how
positive thinking thrives against all odds," he said in Potchefstroom.
Speaking at a lecture in honour of Zuma, as part of the
ANC’s centenary celebration, Motlanthe spoke about how Zuma rose from a poor
background into a respected leader.
Motlanthe is so far the only possible challenger to
Zuma's leadership of the ANC at the party's elective conference in Mangaung
later this month.
He had been nominated by three provinces, but still had
to indicate whether he would stand for the position.
In his lecture on Thursday, Motlanthe said Zuma was a
self-taught man. He had little education and learnt from ANC stalwarts during
his 10-year sentence on Robben Island.
After his release in 1973, Zuma was involved in building
underground leadership, said Motlanthe.
"He was responsible for recruiting young people for
military training, arranging their safe passage to Mozambique and back into the
country."
Zuma was instrumental in the negotiations that gave birth
to democracy and help end political violence in his home province,
KwaZulu-Natal.
"These [negotiating] skills also served well when
former president Nelson Mandela requested his assistance in Burundi peace
mediation, which ended in a landmark peace agreement in 2002."
Motlanthe praised Zuma for his sterling job as president
of South Africa by winning the fight against Aids and TB and introducing new
ways of governance.
"His mantra is that government should do things
differently."
Earlier, Zuma's daughter Thuthukile praised her father as
a humble yet intelligent person.
"His only motivation is to serve his people... He is
the glue that holds our family together," she said.
After Motlanthe's address delegates, led by provincial
ANC chairperson Supra Mahumapelo, sang songs expressing support for Zuma's
second term as ANC president.
- SAPA
