“This is a decisive measure to save millions of South Africans”
Of the many speeches delivered by Cyril Ramaphosa during his tenure as the President of South Africa, his “Lockdown Speech” delivered on the evening of 23 March 2020 from the Union Buildings Press Auditorium, rated as one of the best speeches that elevated him to a status of a “true statesman”, faced with a daunting task of winning the hearts and minds of the nation to rally behind him in the fight against the invisible enemy in the guise of Covid-19 virus.
Not only did he deliver his speech with great oratory acumen, but the speech carried with it a sense of conviction and authority that firmly entrenched him as not only the President of South Africa but also the Commander-in-Chief of the “Coronavirus Command Council” and the Armed Forces of the Republic of South Africa.
Many who listened to his presidential address that night, would attest to the fact that the speech sent a “cold chill to the spine”, marking a moment that would forever change the course of the history of South Africa and the world order as we have come to know it.
“This is a decisive measure to save millions of South Africans from infection and save the lives of hundreds of thousands of people,” the president said in his address.
While this measure will have a considerable impact on people’s livelihoods, on the life of our society and on our economy, the human cost of delaying this action would be far, far greater.”
It is not often that many people would easily recognize a “historical moment” when it slowly unfolds in front of them – because many people think that history is about the past not the present. And that we the people who were either inside the Union Building Press Auditorium that night, or in our living rooms to listen (or view) to the speech on radio, television or through a live-streaming platform – have become part of the making of that historical moment.
And in years to come, those who were too young to understand the gravity of the moment or still to be born in days and years to come – will one day come to learn or know about the historical proceedings of that day (23 March 2020). A day that changed and redefined the trajectory and our life journeys forever.
The President’s “Lockdown Speech” matched almost pound for pound with many “seminal speeches” that changed the course of history in many ways, as evidenced by the subsequent historical developments that followed thereafter. During the Rivonia Trial, Nelson Mandela delivered – from the dock – a speech that became the defining moment of his “Long Walk to Freedom” on 20 April 1964 when he uttered those famous words:
“During my lifetime, I have dedicated myself to this struggle of the African people. I have fought against white domination, and I have fought against black domination. I have cherished the ideal of a democratic and free society in which all persons live together in harmony and with equal opportunities. It is an ideal which I hope to live for and to achieve. But if needs be, it is an ideal for which, if needs be, I am prepared to die for.”
Three years before Mandela`s “I am Prepared to Die” speech, another black civil right leader, Martin Luther King Jr. delivered his famous “I Have a Dream” speech on 28 August 1961 at the Lincoln Memorial in Washington DC. But it was his last speech delivered on 3 April 1968 – a day before his assassination – in Memphis Tennessee, for which he will forever be remembered with: “I Have Seen the Promised Land”.
“I’ve looked over, and I’ve seen the Promised Land. I may not get there with you, but I want you to know tonight that we as a people will get to the Promised Land. So, I’m happy tonight. I’m not worried about anything. I’m not fearing any man.”
And the following day (4 April 1968) he was shot to death by a callous assassin at the balcony of the Lorraine Hotel in Memphis, Tennessee. His speech and subsequent assassination changed the course of the civil rights movement in the USA and the diaspora forever.
But the speech that comes close to Ramaphosa’ s speech of appealing to the nation for patriotism – and the role of citizens in defending freedom in its hour of maximum danger – was a speech delivered by the then newly elected American President JFK Kennedy during his presidential inauguration on 20 January 1961 in Washington DC:
“In the long history of the world, only a few generations have been granted the role of defending freedom in its hour of maximum danger. I do not shrink from this responsibility — I welcome it. And so, my fellow Americans: ask not what your country can do for you — ask what you can do for your country.
With a good conscience our only sure reward, with history the final judge of our deeds, let us go forth to lead the land we love, asking His blessing and His help but knowing that here on earth God’s work must truly be our own.
So, In these historical moments of the imminent danger post by the invisible and stealthy (behaving or done in a cautious and surreptitious manner, so as not to be seen), it is critically important that the nation heeds the inspirational leadership of those tasked with the unenviable responsibility of leading their nation during the time of catastrophic developments.
“There is no doubt that we are currently living in a time of uncertain global crises due to the devastating effects and aftermaths of an invisible virus. In times of crisis, we must not succumb to cynicism and mistrust. Instead, we must maintain faith whilst embracing reason and truth, not speculation and fake news. We know, understandably so, that many are living under anxiety. psyche and feelings in this dark time of uncertainty. That there is frustration, confusion and fear. We know that some don’t even feel safe in their homes, neighbourhoods and communities.
A wise man once said: “A country divided against itself, cannot stand in the time of crisis”. We have faced similar crossroads in our painful past before, and we should not expect to be defeated by the current situation. As a nation, we are all called upon to make the most important decision we have had to make in generations: where we should be united in the pursuit of a Covid-19 free future. Or perish through the foolishness of those who take this unprecedented situation for granted. I trust you to make the right choice, Nkosi-Sikelele iAfrica.”
