Today we have come to pay our revolutionary tribute to a cadre and a true revolutionary of our movement who served the people without counting the cost.

We want to thank the Oliphant family for giving us their son, their brother, their father, their loved one to the service of our revolution

As COSATU we are proud to be associated with a person of the calibre of comrade Danny. Comrade Danny was a true and all round cadre of our movement.

He consistently subjected himself to the discipline of NUMSA as the organisation he was serving and to the discipline of the liberation movement as whole.

He took it upon himself to read and debate with others, as a process of sharpening his own understanding of the policies of our movement.

He could articulate the policies of NUMSA and COSATU in the same way that he could articulate and defend working class Marxist–Leninist perspectives and actions of the liberation movement as a whole.

Not only could he articulate these policies but he was forever prepared to lead from the front in ensuring they are implemented.

Comrade Oliphant understood that in our movement you do not simply become a leader, but you allow yourself to grow, be moulded and be nurtured by the struggle and by your own comrades.

He knew that there is no point where you can say I am ready to lead or where you can claim superior wisdom and knowledge over others but it is the people who can recognis as such and even as they do so, you become even more humble.

He understood that in our struggle there are financial bonuses or awards to be given for serving; the only award is freedom of the people you serve; the only bonus is when you see the working class enjoying more freedoms every day.

Comrade Oliphant was forever prepared to lay down his life for his belief in the liberation of our people.

He had his house burned because of his beliefs, he had his life under constant threat from assassins for his beliefs in the liberation of our people. Despite all these he never retreated an inch from fighting for the liberation of our people in particular the true Liberation of the working class

Comrade Oliphant understood that our struggle, the people’s war , the liberation struggle , the National Democratic Revolution were and continue to be about achieving the vision articulated in the Freedom Charter which amongst others says all shall have an equal share in the country’s wealth.

Comrade Oliphant understood that even the attainment of the Freedom Charter does not mark an end; he knew and passionately believed that the future of South Africa is Socialism.

He understood that the vision articulated in the Freedom Charter and a socialist South Africa will not come from above but will have to be fought for because the revolution is not an apple that falls when it is ripe. You have to make it fall.

I can say without any fear of contradiction that this comrade who lies before us today was of a rare breed, the kind which is not easy to find these days where everyone wants to enter into a fast lane of accumulation to become rich even at the expense of the very freedom we fought for. Comrade Danny was a rare breed.

Our hearts are bleeding at the loss of this great cadre of our movement. How can we lose a talented cadre, a committed cadre and such a hard worker when we are preparing to push for the radical transformation in the second phase of our transition?

How can comrade Danny leave us when we could rely on him to provide theoretical clarity and illuminate the practical way forward. How can we lose such a great life which we needed so much as we consolidate the way forward for the complete emancipation of our people?

We will miss the intellectual contribution of comrade Oliphant, we will miss the commitment and hard work which were the permanent characteristics of this great cadre of our movement.

We console ourselves with the words of comrade Che Guevara when he said “whenever death may surprise us, let it be welcome if our battle cry has reached even one receptive ear and another hand reaches out to take up our arms.

To the Oliphant’s family and the relatives please know that our hearts are with you during this painful period.

We know that after the funeral, when all of us are no longer there you will be alone to accept the pain of realising that your father, your son, your loved one will not be returning home.

Never lose hope that the future contains great things which may in time heal your pain.

May the sole of this great revolutionary rest in peace

AMANDLA!