Veteran journalist-turned-businessman Mathatha Tsedu took aim at the ANC and lashed out at party members who attacked the late Dean Farisani for his outspoken stance against corruption.
Tsedu was speaking at a memorial service for Farisani, held at the George Phadagi Hall in Thohoyandou on Thursday, 5 June. The service preceded the funeral at the University of Venda Stadium on Saturday, 7 June, before Farisani was laid to rest at Beuster Maungani.
Farisani, a 76-year-old liberation stalwart, theologian, former ANC MP, and respected voice of conscience in the struggle, died in the early hours of Thursday, 29 May.
His special provincial official funeral (Category 2) was attended by President Cyril Ramaphosa, several ministers, MECs, mayors, Limpopo Premier Dr Phophi Ramathuba, leaders of the Lutheran Church, ANC general secretary Fikile Mbalula, and many community members.
Tsedu said he first met Farisani in 1974 during a Black People's Convention gathering at Beuster Maungani. He expressed outrage at how ANC members had turned on the very man who had risked his life for the party. "It pained me greatly to see him cry in 2023 at Univen when he bemoaned the greed of his own comrades who use the ANC to steal and enrich themselves, even with Covid money," Tsedu said.
"It shocked me that the charlatans who have taken over the leadership of the ANC are in the main the same rascals that were sellouts when Dean Farisani was being brutalised by police in detention. When he was threatened with death for crying out loud about the VBS greed and the murders of comrades here, the threat did not come from far, it came from within the movement that he almost lost his life for."
He also criticised the ANC's recent regional conference in Vhembe.
"Sis Ramokgopa, I despair. I was watching a clip of what was supposed to be the Vhembe regional conference of your organisation, Farisani's organisation," he said, quoting a delegate who appeared to fast-track the agenda by skipping key reports and jumping straight to nominations. "It gives new meaning to the concept of an elective conference. Dean Farisani would weep again. It is good that he is out of it, for good. May he rest. He owes us nothing, but we owe him gratitude for all the sacrifices."
Tsedu's remarks drew loud applause from some, while others criticised his inclusion in the programme.
At the funeral, President Ramaphosa delivered a heartfelt eulogy, describing Farisani as "a brother, a mentor, a teacher" who had shaped his political awareness in the 1970s.
On behalf of government, Premier Ramathuba paid tribute to Farisani and spoke of her close personal bond with him and his family, which she said had had a profound impact on her life.