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Panyaza Lesufi, deputy chairperson of the ANC in Gauteng, on Wednesday rinsed his mouth about corruption within ANC ranks during his tribute to anti-apartheid activist Andrew Mlangeni.
Mlangeni was the last surviving accused of the sensational Rivonia trial and died last Tuesday in the 1 Military Hospital in Pretoria.
Lesufi addressed the crowd during Mlangeni’s state funeral at the University of Johannesburg’s Soweto campus. In his speech, he warned that the freedom Mlangeni fought for could be lost if the ruling party failed to address some of the internal problems such as corrupt cadres. “The sacrifices you [Mlangeni] have made may be in vain if something drastic is not done,” Lesufi said. “The mistrust between the leadership and our people is growing by the day. Instead of fighting for the development of our people, we fight over positions. Rather than fighting for the development of our country, we are surrounded by greedy vultures. ”
Lesufi pointed out that it had “never happened in history” that ANC voters in the party doubted or were dissatisfied with the actions of some of the “freedom fighters”. “Never in our history has greed and corruption dominated the minds of our people. In your [Mlangeni]’s honor, we must correct all these wrongs. ”
However, he did not pass up an opportunity to promote land reform and expropriation. “But you [Mlangeni] must also point out to those who have died in the struggle for freedom that some of the people you asked for us to forgive take our forgiveness for granted and they still refuse to give our land back to us.”
