Dumisani Makhaye, one of the most colourful and controversial political leaders from the struggle era, died in a Durban hospital on Sunday after a battle with lung cancer.
As KwaZulu-Natal's minister of local government, housing and traditional affairs, Makhaye is the first provincial minister to die in office. His post is being filled temporarily by Mike Mabuyakhulu, the provincial minister of finance and economic development.
KwaZulu-Natal Premier Sbusiso Ndebele said in a statement that Makhaye, 49, had had a relapse of cancer soon after the April elections. He had been admitted to a Durban hospital for observation on Friday and died on Sunday morning.
Many tributes were paid to Makhaye on Sunday, who was also a member of the African National Congress's national executive committee and who served in the KwaZulu-Natal cabinet for the past five years, first as minister of housing and later as minister of agriculture and environmental affairs.
His former spokesperson, Lennox Mabaso, said Makhaye worked flat out during the elections earlier this year. By the time an ANC victory was announced, he was exhausted.
Makhaye was frequently ill in recent months, with Mabuyakhulu standing in for him.
"He was a tired man, but he worked relentlessly," said Mabaso.
Ndebele said Makhaye had served with "utmost dedication".
He had worked long hours in his various posts and had been heavily involved in spreading the ANC doctrine.
President Thabo Mbeki interrupted an engagement on Sunday to also express his condolences.
The leader of the Minority Front, Amichand Rajbansi, said the KwaZulu-Natal population would miss him.
The Democratic Alliance's Roger Burrows sent messages of condolence to family, friends and colleagues of Makhaye.
"He was a spirited and passionate opponent whose lively and controversial debating style made him a formidable debater. He has not lived to see the full outcome of the liberation for which he struggled and his life so cut short must surely be remembered by striving for full and complete freedom for all in KwaZulu-Natal," Burrows said.
The Deputy President of the Durban Chamber of Industry and Commerce, Prince Sifiso Zulu, said South Africa had lost one of its most talented sons.
Colleagues said Makhaye had been "politicised" at the age of five after he had watched as his father's house in Cato Manor had been dynamited by the apartheid regime.
This incident was perhaps the single most telling factor that had changed the course of his life.
Colleagues said Makhaye had recalled the dynamiting several times, especially during heated political debates.
The family moved to KwaMashu where he attended a local school. Later, he went into exile.
He was arrested in Swaziland in 1980 and deported to Tanzania. He was later deployed to ANC headquarters in Lusaka, Zambia, where he joined the organisation's department of information and publicity under Thabo Mbeki.
Describing his death as a "monumental loss", Mabaso said as an ANC activist Makhaye had worked in 58 countries and reached the rank of commander in Umkhonto weSizwe.
There had been a significant increase in slum clearing while Makhaye had been housing minister for two and a half years, he said.
"He was an intellectual, a hands-on leader with the ability to get things done," said Mabaso.
Makhaye was married to Linda and they have a son.
Details of funeral arrangements will be released soon.
While the ANC leadership is silent on the issue of succession, a number of names have been mentioned as possibles, including Meshack Radebe, Senzo Mchunu, the Regional ANC secretary and Sipho Gcabasche who serves the ANC in the KwaZulu-Natal legislature.