• My colleagues in other political parties, • Leaders of civil society organisations, • Fellow South Africans from all walks of life! 1. Welcome: • On behalf of the organisers, I welcome each one of you who have made the effort to be here today. • Your presence, as well the wishes of many other freedom-loving South Africans who could not be present, is a testimony that this cause is just. • We should be proud of this display of patriotism. 2. The National Day of Action: our purpose • We are gathered here to send a signal to the ruling party that, although we respect that the electorate gave it a mandate to rule, South Africans are concerned that it is allowing this land of ours to decline under its watch. • Amongst other burning issues, our people are most concerned about corruption, poverty, unemployment and lawlessness. But chief amongst these issues is our waning economy. • Recent events resulted in a plummeting rand, ratings agencies have downgraded South Africa and this will inevitably lead to a depression of our economy. • The knock-on effect of our Country’s economic ‘junk status’ will negatively impact our people. • Banks won’t lend us money and Government will struggle to service our debts. • Levels of poverty will rise, employment will decrease and no new job opportunities will be created. • Everyone will suffer. The rich will become poorer, but worse, the poor will become destitute. • When some of the top leaders of the ruling party apologised to President Zuma for publicly criticising his actions, one disappointed South African said this: “Deputy President is wrong. Secretary General is wrong. Treasurer General is wrong. Integrity Commission is wrong SACP is wrong. COSATU is wrong. Rating Agency S&P (Standard and Poor) is wrong. Concourt was wrong. Public Protector was wrong. SO, only Zuma is right?” I want to add: “the opposition is wrong”. We, the people who are here today, are wrong! • The powers-that-be remain unmoved, and become defensive, when loyal South African citizens raise such points. • We can’t continue marching forever. We MUST find a way to converge in under one roof to discuss South Africa’s future. • We must find a vehicle that will provide a safe space for us, irrespective of political affiliation, to hammer out a common vision, binding to all, of how we should address our Country’s problems. • We may soon need to have a summit of political, and leaders of civil society to exchange ideas on how to take South Africa forward. • Not only should we find solutions to our current set of challenges, but most importantly, we must leave behind a prosperous country for future generations. Thank you #ZumaMustFall: National Day of Action, UDM President Mr BH Holomisa, MP addressed the masses at the Union Buildings, Pretoria