By Lehlohonolo Lehana.
The African National Congress (ANC) General Secretary Fikile Mbalula delivered a keynote address at the commemoration of the life and activism of the late Pravin “PG” Gordhan.
Mbalula said Gordhan fought state capture in all its forms.
“Comrade PG stood as a bulwark against the forces that sought to undermine our movement, steal from the poor and undermine the capacity of the state to improve the lives of our people. State capture presented a painful chapter in our history driven by thieves cloaked in the colours of our movement.”
The ANC has deemed its renewal project its main priority and has appointed a committee to deal solely with implementing relevant changes. The party has lamented the quality of its membership as well as incidents of ill-discipline and corruption that have embroiled some of its members.
The commemoration was attended by party veterans Sophie Williams De Bruyn, Reverend Frank Chikane and Veterans League president Snuki Zikalala.
Williams De Bruyn described Gordhan as extraordinary human being who served his country with his whole heart.
“We are joined today by many who have been touched by comrade Pravin’s life and his work, from family members and close friends to colleagues, community leaders and ordinary citizens.
“Your presence here speaks volumes about the profound respect and admiration felt by so many for the extraordinary human being who sought nor failed and claimed no accolades or personal rewards.
PG was a communist and, together with his collective, painstakingly developed the concept of the organisational method. Over many years of dedicated and hard work, the ground was laid in the Natal region for a successful and overwhelming defeat of the President’s Council proposals that would have seen the co-option of coloured and Indian people into the apartheid laager through the tricameral parliament.
He is credited with turning around the national tax agency – the South African Revenue Service – and making it a credible and effective institution between 1999 to 2009.
Gordhan was then finance minister until 2014 and was seen as a competent safe pair of hands, who encouraged stability and discipline at the treasury.
Gordhan was seen for many years as the face of resistance against widespread corruption known as “State Capture” during Jacob Zuma’s presidency, and gave evidence about Zuma’s role in South Africa’s financial decay at a public inquiry known as the State Capture Commission.
He was born in 1949 in the eastern port city of Durban. His parents were traders, who had emigrated to South Africa from India in the 1920s.
From the early 1970s, Gordhan, as a pharmacy student, became involved in the struggle against white-minority rule. In the following decade he was a key figure in the United Democratic Front (UDF), a coalition of anti-apartheid organisations.
He was jailed several times for his activism.
In 1991, he co-chaired the Convention for a Democratic South Africa (Codesa), which was responsible for negotiating the end of apartheid and the establishment of a democratic government.
Gordhan retired from active politics after the May polls – after more than 40 years in various structures during the liberation movement, the transition to democracy and in the democratic government.