Tributes continue to pour in for former Finance Minister and Reserve Bank governor Tito Mboweni. President Cyril Ramaphosa confirmed his passing on Saturday.
FOUGHT FOR WORKERS
His former colleague and friend, Trevor Manuel, paid tribute, remembering how Mboweni changed the lives of South African labourers. "When he became Minister of Labour, he enforced much of the rights enjoyed by workers in South Africa now. His tenure as minister introduced the Labour Relations Actions Act, the Basic Conditions of Labour Act and the Employment Equity Act. He had clear intentions of improving the lives of workers and those records stand and will outlive Tito because they're embedded in the lives of workers. He then moved on to be the Governor of the Reserve Bank; all of his adult life has been committed to serving," Manuel said. Manuel added that Mboweni was more than a colleague to him. "He was like a brother to me. Ours was a remarkable relationship; it was like that over 35 years. It's been a truly incredible relationship. Through it all, there was a lot of deep intellectual discussions but also a lot of banter," said Manuel.
AN AMBASSADOR OF NOTE
Former Government Communications Director-General Phumla Williams said Mboweni was not only an 'ambassador' for Lucky Star Pilchards but for Magoebaskloof as well. Williams said that Mboweni's social media posts about Magoebaskloof improved tourism in the area. "I want to say a big thank you to the family of Mboweni, who was an asset not only to them but to South Africans as a whole. I've never been to Limpopo but he always spoke so fondly of Mogoebaskloof. At this point, I'm even convinced that tourism started to thrive in that area," she said.
FUNERL DETAILS REVEALED
The Mboweni family, who also confirmed his passing, said he died after a short illness in the hospital. According to the family, there will be daily prayer services held from today until Wednesday at 6pm at both his homes in Killarney, Johannesburg, and in Sasekane Village in Limpopo. The funeral service will be on Saturday in Tzaneen.
