We salute Goldberg’s selflessness in our fight against the coronavirus
Denis Goldberg, who was, until Wednesday, one of the last two surviving Rivonia Trialists, passed on at a time when we are battling the spread of the Covid-19 global pandemic.
Accused No 3 in the Rivonia Trial, Goldberg will not get the state funeral befitting a man of his stature due to the lockdown regulations to curb the spread of the coronavirus. But his role in the fight against apartheid will be etched in the annals of history of our country.
In paying tribute to one of the ANC’S and SACP’S foremost stalwarts, the governing party this week said Goldberg leaves behind a proud legacy of hard work, selflessness and sacrifice in the service of the movement and the country.
President Cyril Ramaphosa said Goldberg, who was bestowed the party’s highest order, the Isithwalandwe/seaparankoe award, formed part of the veterans of the struggle who called for the reassertion of the moral centre of society and had an unflinching commitment to ethical leadership.
The president said the freedom fighter had dedicated his life to achieving the better life we enjoy today, and that “his revolutionary contribution reinforced the non-racial character of our struggle and our democratic dispensation”.
Born in 1933, he was arrested at the Rivonia headquarters of the ANC’S armed wing, umkhonto wesizwe (MK), in Rivonia in 1963. He was sentenced to life imprisonment, along with former president Nelson Mandela, Walter Sisulu, Govan Mbeki,
Andrew Mlangeni, Ahmed Kathrada and Elias Motsoaledi, among other giants of the struggle.
The only white member of the MK to be arrested and sentenced during the trial, Goldberg was freed in 1985 after serving 22 years of imprisonment. He was reunited with his family in London in the UK, where he continued to work for the ANC.
Goldberg, who had a long battle with lung cancer, is remembered for shouting “life! and life is wonderful” when asked by his mother what their sentence was. He had, together with his comrades, escaped the death penalty.
The novel coronavirus calls for the kind of ethical leadership in all sectors of society that unpinned Goldberg’s character. A leadership that must put the lives of the people of this country first at all material times in dealing with this crisis.
Saving lives must continue to be at the centre of government’s efforts to combat the coronavirus – not commercial, sectarian or self-interest – but life!
We need an ethical leadership in the private sector that does not elevate profits over the lives of the workers; a leadership that does not take advantage of the crisis to hike the prices of essentials such as food.
It is at this time that we need an ethical leadership that does not loot state resources in the name of purchasing personal protective gear and other related
He dedicated his life to achieving the better life we enjoy today
medical equipment desperately needed to fight the virus. This is the time when we need a leadership that does not steal or hijack food parcels meant for the hungry and vulnerable in society. We are also called as citizens to sacrifice many of our liberties in order to preserve life.
The outbreak of the virus has shone the spotlight on the country’s historical triple challenges of poverty, unemployment and inequalities – the fault lines that Goldberg and his generation dedicated their entire lives trying to combat.
As the world grapples with Covid-19, it is incumbent on all of us to heed the call to stay at home and follow lockdown regulations. The best way to honour the memory and legacy of Goldberg will be to remain united in our battle against the virus and save lives.