Mayor of Sedibeng municipality to be laid to rest on Friday

Sedibeng mayor Busisiwe Modisakeng. | Dumisani Sibeko/African News Agency (ANA) Archives

Sedibeng mayor Busisiwe Modisakeng. | Dumisani Sibeko/African News Agency (ANA) Archives

Published Jan 11, 2021

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Johannesburg - The mayor of Sedibeng district municipality, Busisiwe Modisakeng, who died from a Covid-19-related illness, is due to be laid to rest at her hometown of Ratanda outside Heidelberg on Friday.

This was revealed on Sunday following a virtual meeting held by the council’s senior managers and councillors, who are still in shock following her untimely death on Thursday last week.

Modisakeng, 54, became mayor in 2015 following the removal of the controversial mayor Simon Mofokeng.

Archie Mokonane, the director in the office of the mayor, said it was agreed at the meeting that a memorial service would be held for Modisakeng on Wednesday at the United Church in Ratanda.

He said only 50 people would be allowed to attend the service while others would be able to watch the proceedings virtually.

“The funeral will be held on Friday. We have written to the Gauteng premier, asking him to give the mayor a provincial state funeral for her role in council, the ANC and her role as chairperson of the Gauteng wing of the SA Local Government Association (Salga).

“The council is also expected to sit to decide whether to give her a civic funeral. We, however, wait for the premier’s response before we can issue any final communication on her funeral’s preparation,” Mokonane said.

Prior to being mayor of Sedibeng municipality, Modisakeng served as mayor of Lesedi local municipality in Heidelberg and was instrumental in ensuring that the municipality obtained two clean audits during her final years in office, an achievement that was acknowledged in the Gauteng provincial legislature.

Lesedi local municipality’s clean audits came as ANC-controlled municipalities, including the metros of Joburg, Tshwane and Ekurhuleni, were battling to obtain clean audits.

Leading politicians and Salga lauded the sterling work she had done during her tenure at Lesedi, and at Sedibeng, and praised her leadership role in Salga.

She had been an ANC councillor since 1995, and served as a member of the governing party’s provincial executive committee in Gauteng.

Gauteng Human Settlements, Urban Planning, Co-operative Governance and Traditional Affairs MEC Lebogang Maile said Modisakeng died at a time when the provincial government was working hard to strengthen co-operative governance in order to expedite service delivery.

“Her sudden demise robs the people of Gauteng and Sedibeng in particular of a committed servant of the people, who did her utmost in pursuit of service delivery improvement,” said Maile.

Salga also sent its heartfelt condolences to Modisakeng’s family, friends, and comrades.

”Modisakeng has over the past two decades served local government with distinction in different capacities. Prior to her election as chairperson of Salga Gauteng in 2016, she served in the provincial executive committee,” the association said on Friday.

Salga said the local government fraternity and the country had lost a great leader with a wealth of experience, who was an inspiration to all who worked with her.

Political Bureau

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Covid-19