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I am an African. I owe my being to the hills and the valleys, the mountains and the glades, the rivers, the deserts, the trees, the flowers, the seas and the ever-changing seasons that define the face of our native land.

Thabo Mbeki

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Thabo Mbeki
Age: 82
Born: 1942
Born: June 18
Economist
Politician
South African Politician
Thabo Mvuyelwa Mbeki
Tree
Flowers
Seas
Land
Trees
Valleys
Face
Seasons
Mountains
Faces
Changing
African
Ever
Rivers
Define
Sea
Native
Mountain
Hills
Flower
Desert
Deserts

More quotes by Thabo Mbeki

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Historically during the years of the White minority regimes, the State, the national Government held this land in trust for these communities. We said, but no, why should we do that ( return the land to the communities). We didn't say return the land to particular traditional leaders, but to the communities.
Thabo Mbeki
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We should never become despondent because the weather is bad, nor should we turn triumphalist because the sun shines.
Thabo Mbeki
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It's a big problem in South Africa up to this day: many people want to open factories, they want to invest, but then they discover that they don't have the skilled people to employ.
Thabo Mbeki
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Our troops are in Burundi. We were requested by African countries who said, look, the United Nations is not moving on this matter, can you people deploy people, so we can move Burundi forward.
Thabo Mbeki
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As a consequence of the victories we have registered during our first ten years of freedom, we have laid a firm foundation for the new advances we must and will make during the next decade.
Thabo Mbeki
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Part of the issue around communal land, which became a matter of controversy, is that we are saying that this land must go back to communities. Not chiefs and traditional leaders.
Thabo Mbeki
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You might indeed be able to provide this money that people need to start a business, but can they run a business? This new consolidated agency [National Empowerment Fund] focuses on that matter of preparing people so that they can run business successfully.
Thabo Mbeki
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There is a land problem in Zimbabwe, there is a need land for redistribution but it must be handled different, without violence, without conflict, within the context of the law, bearing in mind the interests of all Zimbabweans both black and white. It's necessary that the Zimbabwean government to respond positively to those sorts of messages.
Thabo Mbeki
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The concern around probable questions, which in a sense have been hidden, will grow around the world and the matter is critical, the reason we are doing all this is so we can respond correctly to what is reported to be a major catastrophe on the African continent.
Thabo Mbeki
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The public service needs lots of people, South Africa generally, needs lots of people.
Thabo Mbeki
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We have a series of regular meetings with South African business. Big business. Black business. Agriculture. As well, of course, with the trade unions. A whole series of meetings like that which engage issues that these South African social partners need to address.
Thabo Mbeki
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There must be no abuse of people and they did ask that the South Africa Government should give them whatever support they needed to make sure that they have a proper legal process, proper detention, no abuse of people during interrogation and all of that. And so, we agreed.
Thabo Mbeki
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Of course we run a very open economy, and therefore what happens in the rest of the world, in economic terms, obviously has an impact on us.
Thabo Mbeki
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The problem is not unique the challenge is not unique to South Africa. Other African countries have faced it. But in our case, we have got to solve the problem. You have got an institutional traditional leadership, which functions in a particular way, in for instance, your communal areas.
Thabo Mbeki
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I don't suppose I would describe myself as a showman.
Thabo Mbeki
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If we only said safe sex, use a condom, we won't stop the spread of AIDS in this country.
Thabo Mbeki
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South Africa now needs skilled and educated people to say 'How do we manage and develop this democratic country?'
Thabo Mbeki
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With me, as a town clerk or city manager, there are certain things that I'm supposed to do - if I don't do them, then I don't deserve to continue in this post.
Thabo Mbeki
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Really, a critical matter in the public service is radically to improve the quality of management.
Thabo Mbeki
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We do not accept that human society should be constructed on the basis of a savage principle of the survival of the fittest
Thabo Mbeki