​Celebrating Mandela Day once again brings into focus the values Tata Madiba lived his life by: discipline, compassion, fairness and hope.

His discipline is a reminder that our goals require us to remain committed; to get up every day to live our lives with integrity and passion.

Nelson Mandela’s fighting spirit should always serve as a reminder that what we want for ourselves and those around us can be achieved with dedication. Seeing residents and businesses reach out to those in need during this time has been encouraging; displaying the same humanity which Nelson Mandela lived by.

His compassion and deep understanding of his fellow South Africans enabled him to reconcile conflict in the spirit of nation building and healing.

This is especially important now, as we grapple with the COVID-19 pandemic which impacts all our lives. Let us continue to display that same compassion and care for each other.

Madiba’s vision and hope was the compass for democracy. Despite these challenging times, let us remain committed to charting our way forward, and rebuilding so we can emerge from this pandemic with a renewed strength and resilience.

The fairness displayed by South Africa’s first democratic president allowed him to see things objectively, to see past the untruths and agendas and do what was in the best interests of democracy and finding common ground. I would urge all our residents to be mindful of this as we see an increasing amount of untruths in our society, and an increasing amount of misinformation being spread. Let us not be misled by those with dangerous agendas.

The City of Cape Town will continue to focus its limited resources in helping those who require assistance during these challenging times, in hotspot areas, and in conducting crime prevention operations. Please do your part and wear your mask, wash your hands regularly, and maintain a safe social distance.

We can make it through this as #OneCityTogether.