For many years, we’ve been preaching about black unity. We, as black people, have spoken about the need to unite around issues of radical economic transformation, irrespective of political affiliation.
As a young black person, my heart is pumping with joy.
During the era of former president Jacob Zuma, many of us fell into the trap of pushing an agenda that sought to undermine the black agenda and any plans to disrupt the wrongful doings of white monopoly capital.
I’m not going make Zuma out to be a saint. He had his flaws. As a leader, he made decisions that hurt me, for example when the EFF stood up in Parliament and asked the ANC, under his leadership, to expropriate land without compensation, but the party decided to go against it. As a young black person, that broke my heart. I couldn’t understand how a freedom fighter like Zuma and the liberation movement would say no.
With all those questions playing in my mind, I saw uBaba as an enemy.
But although anger was justified, the mainstream media and white monopoly capital played with our feelings to push their own agendas.
They deliberately fed us propaganda about a house in Dubai, billions of rand that ubaba had stolen, and they have yet to provide evidence. For that, I humbly apologise to the former president. I ask for forgiveness for believing the lies they told us.
I commend Julius Malema for taking the initiative to visit the former president and sort out whatever issues they might have, especially for the advancement of black unity.
For many years, we’ve seen well-orchestrated plans and carefully designed campaigns to discredit the former president. I now know ubaba was a threat that white monopoly capital needed to deal with and remove from office.
How could that same man now be the enemy of the people? We’ve also seen that the law applies differently to people like Zuma.
I hope this tea meeting was the beginning of great things, a start of a new chapter that seeks to unite black South Africans beyond party politics.
Modibe Modiba is the co-founder and co host of Insight Factor.
The Star