Mining magnate Patrice Motsepe has paid tribute to the late former President Nelson Mandela at the Nelson Mandela Lecture currently underway at the Wanderers Stadium in Johannesburg.
Motsepe started off by recalling some of his encounters with Madiba. “I thought of two occasions that came to mind,” he said.
“On one occasion, we had a meeting with Madiba as business leaders. And I think the meeting was in Sandton, at the Sandton Convention Centre. A few month afterwards, we had another meeting and he called me aside and said to me, ‘There was something I liked in what you said at the business meeting at the Convetion Centre.’ And I was a bit embarrassed because that meeting was so many months ago and I couldn’t remember what I had said.”
Motsepe said he proceeded to ask Madiba what he had said. “And he said at that meeting we made a statement that the future of the future of the successful; the future of the educated; the future of the wealthy in South Africa, and the future of the families of the successful and the wealthy is not bright. And in fact, they do not have a future if the poor and the unemployed and the marginalised have no future.”
Motsepe acknowledged all the dignitaries in attendance of the lecture including Zion Christian Church Bishop Dr Barnabas Lekganyane, former US President Barack Obama, Zulu King Goodwill Zwelithini among others.
Watch the full speech below:
