BPI Lifetime Achievement Awards - Acceptance speech by Dr Reuel J. Khoza

Acceptance speech by Dr Reuel J. Khoza  I  02 October 2025

Mr Nkosana Thobela and your BPI Colleagues, Esteemed Colleagues, Fellow Citizens, Ladies and Gentlemen.

I stand before you today with a heart brimming with gratitude. Gratitude not merely as a polite gesture, but as a profound attitude - an orientation of the soul that acknowledges the generosity of others, the grace of opportunity, and the privilege of purpose. To be recognized by the Broad Pool of Ideas (BPI) is not only humbling - it is affirming. Affirming that a life lived in pursuit of principled leadership, intellectual rigor, and ethical stewardship still resonates in a world often seduced by expediency.

To the BPI, I offer my deepest appreciation. You have done more than confer an award - you have cultivated a sanctuary for African thought leaders. A space where minds meet not in cacophony, but in contemplative discourse. You have summoned us to reflect on the socio-economic and political quagmires that engulf our beloved South Africa and the continent at large. You have dared to ask the uncomfortable questions, and in doing so, you have dignified the African intellect.

But let us not romanticise our predicament. We are a continent rich in potential, yet impoverished in leadership. The paucity of great leadership - visionary, ethical, and courageous - is our Achilles’ heel. We have too many who occupy positions of power, and too few who embody the spirit of service. Our political landscape is littered with the wreckage of corruption, patronage, and moral decay. Our educational and health institutions, entrusted with nurturing minds and healing bodies, are often led by those who masquerade as servants of the people while serving only themselves, chanting as their mantra loot baby loot.

So I throw down the gauntlet - not to the elite, but to the citizenry. To you and me. What shall we do about this betrayal? Shall we remain passive spectators, anesthetised by cynicism? Or shall we rise - indignant, informed, and intentional? The time has come for civic courage. For citizens who do not merely vote, but vigilantly hold power to account. For communities that do not merely complain, but co-create solutions. For a society that does not merely celebrate achievers, but multiplies them.

The BPI celebrates excellence. But what next? Let this award be not a conclusion, but a call to action. Let it ignite a movement of ethical leadership, of intellectual activism, of civic engagement. Let us build a republic of conscience - where achievement is not the exception, but the expectation.

I accept this honour not for myself alone, but on behalf of every African who still believes that integrity is not obsolete, that leadership is not a title but responsible stewardship, and that the future is not inherited - it is actively co-created.  Very little, if anything, is more liberating than being the author of one’s destiny.  As William Jennings Bryan proclaims “Destiny is no matter of chance.  It is a matter of choice:  it is not a thing to be waited for, it is a thing to be achieved.” 

Arise! Achieve, Achieve!! Khanimambo.