Dear Mr Matladi,
Re: Condolences on Passing Away of Dr Anne Letsebe.
It was with shock and great sadness that I heard the completely unexpected news from my wife, Zanele, that our very dear sister, Anne Letsebe, had passed away.
Words are never enough to speak in tribute of a person so excellent and outstanding as was Dr Motlatjie Anne Letsebe.
I was very privileged to work closely with her for a number of years as we both served, with others, in the Presidency of our Republic.
It is only with time that I, and perhaps others, came to understand how strong the bonds became among us as we worked together daily as members of the Staff of the Presidency.
Anne served at that place at the very heart of the Presidency and our governance system, the Cabinet Office.
And yet, being a humble, self-effacing and lovely human being, she never carried herself with any demonstration of self-importance.
Her high academic qualifications and experience, her proven mastery of her profession and her unquestionably high standing in society, in addition to the fact that daily she was enveloped by the thought processes and decision making of government at its highest levels, all said that something had to shout out loud – here walks a star!
But because this was Sis’ Anne Letsebe, no such bells were rung.
Rather, like so many in the Republican Presidency at the time, she did her sensitive work as a labour of love, because like everybody else around her, regardless of their particular tasks, she was moved by the knowledge that what she was doing was but part of an historic effort to give birth to a new people-centred South Africa.
I see her even today, a smile on her face, never burdened by the fact that as part of the Presidency she was always on call, ready to work into the night on any day and on weekends.
That image stands out today with particular brilliance as we see many instances of a sad, painful and hurtful tragedy of unacceptable practices in the public service, whereas all that those concerned needed to do was to follow the example set so selflessly by Sis’ Anne Letsebe.
Because many in our country elected to destroy the beautiful edifice Anne Letsebe and others had worked so joyfully to build, we thought that it was right that we call on the entirety of our people to engage in a national dialogue and thus intervene to rescue our beloved motherland as it is sliding visibly towards the abyss.
As we have done this, we have grieved at her absence because we know that she would have played an important role as a change-agent among the millions of our people, standing out as their true messenger.
We knew that she would be such a thought leader, present among the people, because we could not but recall the inspiring days when she was the Co-Chair of the historic Women’s National Coalition which produced the indelible Women’s Charter for Effective Equality in 1994.
It came as no surprise that Sis’ Anne passed away while still deeply engaged in the noble effort to achieve the development due to the women of our country.
Our feeling of grief seems permanent because she left us at a time when we needed her most.
In his poem, ‘We Wear the Mask’, the eminent African American poet, Lawrence Dunbar, says:
We wear the mask that grins and lies,
It hides our cheeks and shades our eyes,—
This debt we pay to human guile;
With torn and bleeding hearts we smile,
And mouth with myriad subtleties.
Please accept our heartfelt condolences at the death of one very dear to you and the rest of your family, Dr Motlatjie Anne Letsebe.
We too feel the loss and grieve with you, because she was to us as well, a comrade, a colleague, a friend and fond sister.
May Sis’ Anne Letsebe rest in eternal peace.
With heartfelt sympathy,
Thabo Mbeki.
Patron.