Cyril Ramaphosa - The turkey that cannot vote for Christmas

Cyril Ramaphosa – The turkey that cannot vote for Christmas.

Floyd Shivambu

Before he delivered his final verdict as Chairperson of the African National Congress National Disciplinary Committee, I Nyiko Floyd Shivambu published a brutally frank article on various newspapers and new media platforms about Cyril Ramaphosa. The decision to do so was informed by my strong conviction that truth must be told, and had to be told before the judgment because some narrow minded individuals were going to think and believe that am doing so because of my bitterness if i had published the article post verdict. Almost all my colleagues and comrades advised against publishing the truthful perspectives about Cyril Ramaphosa under my name, and I did not agree with them because I am not scared of being associated with the truth. I live and am forever inspired by Amilcar Carbral’s clarion call of at all times telling the truth and not claiming easy victories.

After the brutal, insensitive and unjustifiable murder of Mineworkers in Marikana by the South African government in collaboration with Lonmin Mine management, many people should begin to realise and appreciate who Cyril Ramaphosa is. Cyril Ramaphosa is a one of the greediest, insensitive, and collaborationist sell-out you can ever meet anywhere in the world. As a former leader of Mineworkers, who unfortunately never worked in any Mine, he should understand better the conditions workers work under and the kind of terrible treatment workers are subjected to. Because he is in a position of authority in predominalty white British company called Lonmin and other mining corporations that he is Director of, and as a former Trade Unionist and currently leader of the ANC, he is better placed to advocate for workers’ interests and aspirations that the workers combined.

Genuine people and revolutionaries like Nelson Mandela, Govan Mbeki, and Walter Sisulu never betray what they stood for and have fought the same battle with the same dedication and inspiration for a period of more than 50 years individually. They proclaimed ‘Freedom in Our Lifetime’ in 1944, and only realised that political freedom 50 years later in 1994 because they never betrayed principle, nor renounced what they forever stood for. Not so long ago, Cyril Ramaphosa was an advocate of workers interests and even before 20 years finishes, he is diametrically on the opposing end rubbishing and neglecting workers interests. He only cares about his own interests and aspirations now as a Director of many white dominated corporations which do not do anything beneficial and constructive in society.

For instance, South African society and the ANC are currently and have on many occasions noted and identified the damage alcohol causes on society, and as a Director of SAB Miller, the biggest culprit in the destruction of societal morals, values, health and progress, Cyril Ramaphosa has never even once spoken against the abuse of alcohol because he benefits out of destruction of society. He cannot speak because he proudly and often says that ‘a turkey cannot vote for Christmas’. The first time I heard the phrase ‘a turkey cannot vote for Christmas’ was from Cyril Ramaphosa who after he could not successfully counter argue against the case for nationalisation of Mines I presented to him on a one to one basis. When left with no substantial and sound points to argue, he just proclaimed “a turkey cannot vote Christmas”. I initially didn’t understand, but later got to understand that he says he can never support anything that will infringe his personal greedy interests and wealth accumulation projects.

Still on this point, a recent study by the Medical Research Council pointed to various sad realities about alcohol abuse in South Africa. This includes the fact that “drinkers are 57 percent more likely to be HIV positive than non-drinkers”. Further than that the MRC has scientifically proven that “alcohol leads to violence and it makes one aggressive”. This is additional to the fact that many other sordid realities are alcohol related, including the facts that:

· Alcohol misuse is causally implicated in a range of chronic health problems (e.g. cirrhosis of the liver). However, many of the primary effects of alcohol misuse occur from episodes of acute alcohol intoxication.

· Acute alcohol intoxication is associated with increased mortality and morbidity arising from intentional and non-intentional injuries.

· Acute alcohol intoxication is also associated with unsafe sexual practices and increased risk of contracting a sexually transmitted disease.

· Alcohol misuse, combined with poor nutritional status, increases susceptibility to opportunistic diseases by compromising the immune system.

· The misuse of alcohol during pregnancy has been linked to fetal alcohol syndrome in infants.

· Alcohol misuse also impacts on the criminal justice system, with evidence of associations between drinking at risky levels, committing crime, or being a victim of crime.

Cyril Ramaphosa is surely aware of these realities, but is part of those who suppress this vital information and will never raise it in the SAB Miller Boards because he cannot be a turkey that votes for Christmas. As someone associated with the ‘caring’ ANC, he cannot be associated with activities that are destroying society and almost proving the racist Prophets of doom that black people will never run this country successfully, because they only care about alcohol, women and killing each other.

Cyril Ramaphosa is part of the people who for many years have claimed to be true revolutionaries and representatives of the people, whilst in actual fact were Careerists only interested in wealth accumulation and self-enrichment. The conditions and state mineworkers find themselves in almost all Mines in South Africa is nowhere close to desirable, and those who have access to authorities and power say nothing about it because they stand to benefit out of suffering of workers. Workers’ continue to live in dire, devastating, inhuman and horrible conditions amidst South Africa wealth in mineral resources, because those who have access to power are co-opted and now like it that way.

After the Marikana massacre, where fleeing mineworkers were met by a hail of bullets from the police, straight thinking individuals should have called for a commission to closely look into the conditions of mineworkers in South Africa, particularly as it relates to remuneration and working conditions. Without disclosing that he is a Director of the Lonmin mining corporation, Cyril Ramaphosa tried to dupe workers and South African society by donating money for the burial of those killed by the South African government. What is more disgusting about Cyril Ramaphosa is that he decided to contribute R2 million for the burial of mineworkers who were killed by the South African government, because he simply wants them six feet under and not concerned about the wellbeing of those they are leaving on earth. He never cared about them when they were still alive and does not care about those who are alive today. He instead became part of the decision that threatened workers to go back to work or face dismissal because he is losing profits.

Just recently, Cyril Ramaphosa placed a bid to buy a wild animal that costs more than R18 million. Such amount of money can build hundreds of houses for mineworkers in Marikana or take many kids to school, but the great Negotiator, the Constitution man wanted to buy a wild animal with such kind of money. I am sure those are the kind of things he does on a daily basis because that is what greedy capitalists do. How on earth can a comrade, a respected individual consider to buy a wild animal for such amount of money whilst so many people in South Africa live in unbearable conditions and easily die because of poverty, starvation and hopelessness?

We should all realise that at the core of South Africa’s social degeneration are wealth accumulators who are only concerned about the millions of cash they make for themselves in the name of black economic empowerment, and Cyril Ramaphosa is amongst the Pioneers of looters who will suck and drain poor South African sweat and blood. Perhaps the only thing he has done correctly was to endorse Jacob Zuma’s instruction to get some of us suspended from the ANC, because it would be so sad and painful to be associated with an ANC that kills its own citizens, justifies the killing and do nothing about instances of corruption, greed and crass materialism because its head is rotten with corruption allegations, fraud, money laundering and theft of government money to but impractical cities in the middle of nowhere. 

Floyd Shivambu is a Freedom Fighter, Political Activist and Defender of the Freedom Charter.