President Thabo Mbeki has called on all South Africans to commit themselves to work together to help bring prosperity to the country.
He told thousands of people attending national Freedom Day celebrations in Kimberley on Thursday that there are a number of key local government priorities that have to be addressed urgently.
One of these is the capacity of local government structures.
”We have to attend seriously and systematically to this matter because it cannot be that after 12 years of democracy we still have municipalities that cannot deliver basic services.”
Mbeki said service delivery is central to the country’s freedom because citizens cannot enjoy this while others have no clean water and still use the bucket system in areas with no sanitation.
The president also gave a warning to greedy and corrupt councillors, businessmen and officials who think municipalities are ”cash cows”. ”The law will deal appropriately with them so that the resources intended for our communities are correctly utilised.”
He honoured past heroes and heroines who brought freedom to South Africa.
”The celebration of Freedom Day is no ordinary celebration. It is a day when the country’s citizens need to pause and reflect on the past and remember those whose sacrifices made it possible for all South Africans to enjoy the benefits of democracy.”
After his speech, Mbeki danced along to the music of Solly Moholo and his band, to the delight of the crowd. — Sapa