By: Natasha Archary

Former Minister in the Presidency, Essop Pahad has passed away at the age of 84-years.
Pahad reportedly passed peacefully in his sleep, with tributes to the late ANC stalwart pouring in from party members, including President Cyril Ramaphosa.
Ramaphosa is said to be saddened by the passing of the struggle stalwart, and offered his condolences to Pahad’s family, friends and comrades.
“We mourn the passing of a veteran of our struggle, 65-years after he took his first revolutionary step of becoming a member of the Transvaal Indian Congress.
Security crackdowns, banning and exile shaped Essop Pahad’s contribution over decades to our struggle and, as Parliamentary Counsellor to President Thabo Mbeko and Minister in the Presidency, to the early design and impact of our democratic state.
Essop Pahad was a thinker and strategist who brought his understanding of the human condition, injustice and inequality at the national and international level to bear on our transition to democracy and in introducing a democratic, non-aligned and activist South Africa to the global community.
He served our nation with pride, principle, pragmatism, and a charm that lived comfortably alongside a tongue that could lash severely at the right provocation.”
Presidency on the passing of ANC stalwart, Essop Pahad
Pahad served as Parliamentary Counsellor to then Deputy President Thabo Mbeki after the 1994 elections in the country.
He was then appointed as Minister in the Presidency in 1999, and carried a wide range of political duties.
In 2000, Pahad was accused of being involved in corruption but denied the allegations.
After Thabo Mbeko resigned as President of South Africa in September 2008, Pahad also submitted his resignation as Minister.
Also read: 17 die in Boksburg gas leak believed to be caused by illegal mining



