Johannesburg - Founder and president emeritus of the IFP and traditional prime minister to the Zulu Nation, Prince Mangosuthu Buthelezi, said his dearest wish was for the ANC and the IFP to reconcile and re-establish historic ties.
Relations between the ANC and the IFP soured in the 1980s when Inkatha refused to abandon the liberation movement’s founding principle of non-violence. Buthelezi also refused to support sanctions and disinvestment, knowing the damage it would cause to the economy. The chasm widened when black-on-black violence engulfed KwaZulu-Natal and the then-Witwatersrand as the ANC’s People’s War was unleashed on South Africa.
In an exclusive interview with The Star, Buthelezi said he had been working tirelessly since the dawn of democracy to get the IFP and the ANC to sing from the same hymn book once more.
"There were many meetings held over the years in an attempt to restore a good relationship, but this has not happened. I am now in my 90s, and nothing would give me greater pleasure than if, when I close my eyes for good, there was reconciliation," Buthelezi said.
The liberation struggle posed a number of challenges for the ANC and other liberation parties. It was thus at the instruction of top leaders of the ANC, such as Oliver Tambo, that a new structure had to be created to weaken the apartheid regime while the ANC and other leaders were banned.
Buthelezi shares how he met with some of the liberation movement leaders on the continent while on ANC business.
"They said we want you to start a membership-based organisation when you go back to South Africa. I thought this was a trap. I said to myself, I am an ANC; how can I start my own organisation? But (Zambia’s Kenneth Kaunda) agreed with Mr. Tambo, and so I launched Inkatha ye Nkululeko ye Sizwe," Buthelezi said.
Inkatha ye Nkuleleko ye Sizwe—now known as the Inkatha Freedom Party or the IFP—was established on March 21, 1975.
He said as a young politician he had learned to express his views and was not afraid to question matters that did not make sense to him.
While he differed with the ANC on policies that would lead to the defeat of the apartheid government, he said the ANC was his home.
The uneasy relationship between the IFP and ANC has led to misconceptions about Buthelezi’s role in the liberation of the African people. He said he was deeply saddened by the deaths of black South Africans preceding the 1994 election. He further stated that the IFP was established as an internal wing of the ANC.
"I was very sad, even at that time, but I never said they must kill the ANC," he said.
Today, Prince Buthelezi remains committed to community politics. He still replies to the letters of those who write to him. He is an elder statesman deeply rooted in the politics of self-help, self-reliance, and servant leadership. Buthelezi has won several awards in recognition of his efforts in achieving peace and liberation for the African people of South Africa and enjoys long-standing friendships with African stalwarts, such as Kaunda and Julius Nyerere.
On Tuesday, March 21, 2023, the Prince Mangosuthu Buthelezi Foundation will celebrate Buthelezi’s legacy and contribution to the freedom South Africa enjoys.
The Foundation will be hosting the inaugural Prince Mangosuthu Buthelezi Foundation Lecture, with the keynote address being delivered by former Nigerian president, Dr Olusegun Obasanjo.
Obasanjo is expected to pay tribute to Buthelezi’s efforts in the liberation struggle.
Obasanjo is world renowned for his peacekeeping efforts on the continent. He is known as a Nigerian nationalist and a continental intercessor for peace.
All South Africans can join the lecture via a live stream on the foundation’s website, www.thebuthelezifoundation.org.za.
The Foundation was established in 2022 and works to promote the virtues of nation-building, constitutionalism, justice, and inclusiveness, as well as to preserve the legacy of Prince Mangosuthu Buthelezi in its diverse entirety.
The Star