Good morning ladies and gentlemen. It is most gratifying, but not at all surprising, to see so many prominent and distinguished people at this funeral of a truly outstanding South African, Mr Gibson Thula.
(BREIF ACKNOWLEDGEMENT OF RECOGNISABLE VIP’s WHO ARE PRESENT).
At the outset I need to stress that I am both honoured and privileged to have been asked by members of the family to express a few words in memory of Baba Thula, an inspirational individual who was also a loyal and special friend to so many people. All of us who are gathered here today – family, colleagues and friends of Bra Gib – are held together by the feelings of love and considerable affection that we have for an outstanding man who has so sadly left us. He was a person who always gave so much more than he took.
To his loving wife, Anastasia, fondly known as Nanana; daughter Noli, her husband, Dr. Lincoln Mboweni, and Baba Thula’s three very special grand-children; Dumi, Vela and Nene; be assured that we share your sorrow and profound sadness. We grieve with you at this time of great heartache and we appeal to the good Lord to give you the strength and the fortitude to come to terms with the sad loss that you so unfortunately have to endure.
Let us acknowledge that the feelings of sadness and despair that all of us are currently dealing with are the inevitable consequences of having to bid a final farewell to a beloved husband, father, grandfather and friend. But in paying tribute to Baba Thula, we cannot allow them to comprehensively obscure the countless special moments that we shared with him. The love and the affection that he so generously dispensed, the sincere friendship, the good fellowship, the laughter – and so many other treasured qualities and episodes that are etched indelibly into our memories. It is these fond recollections that make it essential for all of us to acknowledge that today’s gathering in this beautiful place of worship is not only a mournful occasion, but also the celebration of an authentically exceptional life.
It will never be possible – and neither should it be – to easily expunge the anguish. But in confronting it, there must be a concerted effort to remember Baba Thula in the way that he would most dearly want to be remembered.
In the first instance we are compelled never to forget the love and respect that Baba Thula had for dear wife, for Noli, Lincoln and most especially his grand-children. I distinctly remember several years ago praising Baba Thula for the love and kindness that he so obviously had for Noli and Lincoln’s children. In his typically light-hearted but wise manner he informed me that his grand-children were his dividends. All successful businessmen, he pointed out, enjoyed the benefits that they derived from good dividends and his grand-children, he added, were the most valuable dividends that anybody could ever ask for.
When I started the Strategic Partners Group – SPG – back in 2002, I was most fortunate to have among my start-up company shareholders three extremely wise men. They were Comrades Makgoti u-Squire, Cleo Nsibande and Baba Thula. A bit later we were joined by yet another wise man, Hermanus Gabriel Loots known as Cde Stewart. Squire and Baba Nsibande passed away some time ago and we lost Cde Stewart on 29 January 2016 . Today we are mourning the passing of Baba Thula and when I looked the other day I discovered, to my great concern, that there remains only one long-standing individual shareholder who is older than me. The thought that went through my mind was that for as long as he remains with us, I can continue to run the business without fear of following these wise gentlemen. Knowing, however, that all good things must eventually come to an end it remains an inescapable reality that the company’s current component of ancient wisdom is not everlasting.
When we are confronted, as we have been, by the passing of great company stalwarts in quite close succession, it is perfectly natural to be asking: “Who will be next?” As a possible contender I intend from now on to pay greater attention to the advice and guidance given to me by my dear wife Nandi who is a medical doctor regarding healthy living.
Focusing for a moment on the subject of good advice I am obliged to disclose that I have met very few people who ever came close to competing with Baba Thula when it came to the possession of an ability to present well considered and invaluably wise counsel.
There were times when it was uncompromisingly harsh because Baba Thula, in spite of his kindness and sincere humility, was never inclined to suffer fools gladly. Additionally and when circumstances demanded it, he had the capacity to be most ferocious especially when confronted by people whom he believed had abused his trust and, even more serious, were attempting to lay corrupt claim to his hard-earned money. Such an incident came about in the early days of SPG when a group of what we thought were reliable colleagues launched an attempt to hijack the company and with it SPG’s legitimate involvement as the empowerment partner in the Gautrain project.
I shall never forget a meeting we had in the Chambers of the Senior Counsel who had been briefed to represent SPG. Baba Thula declared that we were faced by people who clearly wanted to fight and who wanted to get their hands on our money by resorting to a strategy that was blatantly dishonest.
“They want a fight, they will get a fight,” he insisted. “We are not cowards and any people who believe that they can deceitfully take our money will be most severely dealt with”.
The matter went to the High Court and was heard over a period of two weeks before judgment was handed down in favour of SPG. Every day, without exception, Baba Thula was the first person to take his seat in the public gallery. He was the most diligent follower of proceedings and was overjoyed when the court arrived at a verdict that exonerated SPG and was harshly critical of the people who had attempted so treacherously to misappropriate the company and its primary business asset.
As a final component of this tribute to a truly good man, I need to make reference to Baba Thula’s uncompromising commitment to punctuality. Always impeccably dressed, he would arrive at meetings at precisely the right time. A late arrival was an unforgivable transgression. I once incurred his wrath when as chairman of a particular meeting I delayed its commencement to accommodate a participant who was running late. He told me in no uncertain terms that by postponing the start of the meeting I was condoning aberrant behaviour and punishing those who had made the effort to be in attendance at the correct time. Meetings attended by him were a consistent pleasure because he always presented his contributions in a well-considered and concise fashion. After presenting his contributions succinctly, he would rise and leave the meeting gracefully. People with a fondness for the sound of their own voices attracted his transparent displeasure and he was similarly dismissive of those who failed to add value to critical proceedings.
Ladies and gentlemen, my mind is filled with endless warm and affectionate thoughts about Baba Thula that I could continue to impart but I hope that the ones that I have articulated today will enable all of you to reflect on your own reminiscences of time spent in the company of an outstanding, down-to-earth and truly faithful friend.
He was a man of enormous substance and a great South African. As a meaningful and appropriate salute to him I would like to recite those beautiful words that were specifically written many years ago for use at occasions such as these.
May the road rise up to meet you.
May the wind be always at your back.
May the sun shine warm upon your face.
May the rain fall gently upon your fields.
And until we meet again,
May God hold you in the palm of his hand.
Rest in peace and hamba kahle my unforgettable friend. Your affable presence will be sorely missed but treasured memories of you will never wilt in the minds of members of your dearly beloved family or those of your many loyal and affectionate friends.
Ladies and gentlemen, thank you for your kind attention.