ANC MP Afrikaans Malomane 1

Photo: YouTube / MyAfrica

ANC MP draws standing ovation from DA for her defence of Afrikaans [video]

Take a bow, ma’am: Vuyisile Malomane had Parliament on its feet with her Heritage Day speech, celebrating the need for Afrikaans and SA’s diverse culture.

ANC MP Afrikaans Malomane 1

Photo: YouTube / MyAfrica

Remember the name Vuyisile Malomane: Her rousing speech in Parliament on Thursday returned civility and togetherness to the house, in a week where brawls and squabbles dominated the National Assembly once more. The ANC MP dropped a speech ahead of Heritage Day to draw the patriot out of us all.

Malomane waxed lyrical about the rich diversity South Africa has to offer. She took pride in the national flag, and the government’s coat of arms. It was a wholesome speech, and one that reached out to all corners of Mzansi. But it was her point about the language of Afrikaans that drew the biggest applause of them all.

Afrikaans in the national anthem

The politician made it clear that, as South Africans, we should all sing the Afrikaans section of the national anthem. It has been a thorny issue over the years, with the EFF flat-out refusing to sing that particular verse when Nkosi Sikelel’ iAfrika is played in Parliament.

But Malomane believes this would be the first step towards rejecting “narrow-nationalism”. In the same breath, she also stated that the old apartheid flag must never be raised again in South Africa:

“When our first democratically elected government decided to make Heritage Day one of our national days, we did so because our rich and verified cultural heritage has a profound power to help build our new nation. We encourage South Africans to know, love and embrace our national symbols, we encourage them to fly our flag very high.”

“When the national anthem was introduced, it had the Afrikaans version. We need to sing it as this unites us. Never again can we allow narrow-nationalism to creep in and consume our nation. On 24 September, it is Heritage Day: whether you are coloured, or black… no matter what you call yourself… Let us unite and celebrate!”

Vuyisile Malomane

Who is Vuyisile Malomane?

Upon finishing her speech – which was interrupted several times by the Red Berets across the room – Malomane was treated to a rapturous standing ovation from the DA. Even their chief whip, John Steenhuisen, asked the speaker if the ANC representative could be given more time to speak.

Just the kind of unity we like to see ahead of Heritage Day! You can check the video out here for yourself. There’s a lot of shouting from the benches, and bollockings from the speaker, but the message remains strong.

Watch ANC MP Vuyisile Malomane defend Afrikaans in Parliament here: