Essop Pahad has died.
Tsheko Kabasia/Gallo Images/Sunday World
- Former minister Essop Pahad died in his sleep on Thursday morning.
- He was 84 years old at the time of his death.
- The funeral arrangements have not been finalised.
Former Minister in the Presidency and anti-apartheid veteran Essop Pahad died in his sleep on Thursday morning at the age of 84, his family confirmed.
The family said funeral arrangements would be finalised soon.
Pahad served as Minister in the Presidency from 1999 to 2008 and was known as former president Thabo Mbeki’s right-hand man.
From Schweizer-Reneke in the North West, he came from a well-known family of political activists who fought against apartheid.
The apartheid government arrested him in 1962 for organising an illegal strike, and he was later banned from the country.
READ | Heart and soul of ANC in disarray – Pahad
In exile, Pahad served in the leadership of the ANC and the SACP. Before he was appointed as a minister, he served as a parliamentary advisor to Mbeki.
After leaving the government in 2008, he started a quarterly magazine called The Thinker.
Deepest condolences to the Pahad family. The first Minister responsible for the GCIS. Thanks for your leadership and contribution to the freedom of South Africa. pic.twitter.com/fGN5LFIyrT
— phumla williams (@mirriamp) July 6, 2023
He held a PhD in history from the University of Sussex and a master’s degree from the same university.
Pahad also served on the national executive committee of the ANC from 1994 until 2007.
In 2017, he reportedly said that the heart and soul of the ANC was in disarray.
“What we don’t want is the ANC to die with us. It would die if we do not regenerate the movement,” he said at the time.
Although he was criticised for his dealings with the Gupta family, he was among the ANC veterans who were outspoken against former president Jacob Zuma.
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