Johannesburg - Former Bophuthatswana leader Lucas Manyane Mangope has died, it emerged on Thursday.
This is according to South African Broadcasting Corporation (SABC), which broke the news on Thursday night.
Mangope was the president of Bophuthatswana, one of the apartheid-era homelands or Bantustans to which black South Africans were confined
He was also the former leader of United Christian Democratic Party (UCDP), a party he also founded.
It remains unclear what the cause of death is at this stage.
Tributes began pouring in on social media following news of the former leader's death.
Many users took to Twitter to remember Mangope and pass their condolences to his family and friends.
See some of the tweets below:
— Tumi Sole (@tumisole) January 18, 2018
Robala Ka kgotso, Motlotlegi Tautona Rre His Excellency President Manyane Mangope #lucasmangope pic.twitter.com/7lleBsz8dr
— Raboiyane Mothobi (@RaboiyaneM) January 18, 2018
R.I.P #LucasMangope Alitshoni lingena ndaba. Another African leader has fallen.
— ThanduxoloJindela (@Ian_Jindela) January 18, 2018
#LucasMangope roballa ka kgotso ntate mo presidanti 🕊