H.I.M. Haile Selassie speech to parliament November 2, 1973
"It is a great responsibility to be elected to legislate upon
matters that are the anchor of personal liberty, security, social responsibility
- in general of a framework of organized and ordered social order.
One measure of the healthy growth of parliamentary democracy
is the insight sense of responsibility and dedication brought into work by deputies
in the course of deliberating on issues originating from either the executive
branch of government or the Chamber itself. Our government has given education,
public health and related programs high priority with the conviction that trained
manpower and sound health are crucial to the progress of advancing economic
growth.
Accordingly, no less than 20% of the national budget was allotted
to education. Enrollment in governmental and private elementary and secondary
schools has surpassed targets of the Third Five-Year Development Plan. It is
also gratifying that enrollment in the University is growing from year to year.
Considerable time and energy have been devoted by experts
to the task of making research into the kind of education best suited to Ethiopia's
present needs in accordance with a directive we personally issued. The recommendation
has reached us through the Council of Ministers and we have given order for
its immediate implementation.
It is normal for every individual family or generation to
give way to the new by adding something to the heritages bequeathed upon it.
No man chooses his own parents. But in the last analysis, a man's ultimate worth
is, in the modern world, determined by his accomplishments and his service in
the cause of his nation and his countrymen. It is thus our sacred duty and responsibility
to be cognizant of the fact that because history is bound to judge us tomorrow
by what we are doing today, we must do everything in our power to leave behind
us a lasting legacy of work.
Lastly, we would like to remind you members of the Houses
of Parliament to deliberate on the bills already submitted, and those which
will be submitted to you as a matter of urgency by realizing the fact that they
are matters of crucial importance for the progress and development of the country.
May God, who proposes and disposes everything, be with you
all in the discharge of your duties and responsibilities."
H.I.M. EMPEROR HAILE SELASSIE I
Speech to Parliament
November 2, 1973
Geneva, Switzerland, June 30, 1936
