Political parties on Tuesday paid tribute to outgoing Democratic Party MP Douglas Gibson, who is leaving Parliament to take up a post as South Africa’s ambassador to Thailand.
The African National Congress said despite the fact that Gibson had previously said things that offended its MPs, it would always respect his courage.
”Sometimes he made us laugh and sometimes he made us very angry, but he stood his stead,” the party’s chief whip, Isaac Mogase, said.
Inkatha Freedom Party’s MP Koos van der Merwe described Gibson as a skilled and talented politician, ”with the guts to fight back”.
Gibson said his appointment was evidence that South African was a truly democratic country.
Referring to President Thabo Mbeki and Foreign Affairs Minister Nkosazana Zuma, Gibson said: ”It says a lot for both of them that they are prepared to honour a DA loyalist and a strong Helen Zille supporter in this way. That they trust me to represent our country sends out a strong message that our democracy includes us all,” he said.
Gibson last year came under severe attack from the ruling party and the majority of political parties after the veteran MP had led a group of journalists on an on-site inspection of Mbeki’s R8-million retirement home in Johannesburg.
Gibson said he was humbled by the fact that on Friday all the political parties spoke well of him.
”Politics in South Africa is so interesting. This certainly beats the debate last year when I was censured for reprehensible conduct towards the president,” he said.
However, Gibson conceded that his new job requires of him not to be confrontational.
”From being a ‘fight-back’ politician of the robust school, I shall now learn to behave myself as a good diplomat should.
”While I am a little sad about leaving the National Assembly and politics and the people who have been so important in my life for so many years, I am determined to live up to the great opportunity that has been given to me to serve South Africa,” he said.
DA chief whip Ian Davidson said Gibson was a colourful character who would be missed by both the party and Parliament at large. — Sapa