No ‘dirty tricks’ suspected in Mpho Moerane’s death says family

Family spokesperson for the Moerane family, Mike Maile announced the passing of former Joburg mayor Mpho Moerane at the Milpark Hospital, former ANC spokesperson Keith Khoza(R). Image:Itumeleng English/African News Agency(ANA)

Family spokesperson for the Moerane family, Mike Maile announced the passing of former Joburg mayor Mpho Moerane at the Milpark Hospital, former ANC spokesperson Keith Khoza(R). Image:Itumeleng English/African News Agency(ANA)

Published May 19, 2022

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The ANC in the City of Johannesburg has called for unity amid the crisis caused by the death of the party's treasurer general in the region Mpho Moerane announced last night.

Moerane was contesting the chairperson position at this year's upcoming regional elective conference which would possibly catapult him to a chance of being mayor again.

Factions within the ANC in the City of Johannesburg had become more evident with the deaths of the last two mayors of the city which had come from within the ANC.

Some comrades were not pulling punches back on social media with insinuation being made that there was some type of political sabotage from within the ANC in the region.

ANC spokesperson Sasa Manganye appealed for members of the ANC to unite in the difficult time.

He said casting aspersions on one another would not help the party but would further divide the party.

"We call upon our members and the community that we must stop spreading conspiracy theories that have no basis. We should allow the ANC and the family to mourn without distractions. As rough as it is, we should understand that accidents happen," Manganye said.

Manganye said it was unfair for people to blame Moerane's political opponents for his death.

"We should do what it takes to unite the organisation instead of being busy vilifying one another, We want to make it clear to comrades that even when we contest each other it's not a hate and love situation it's about the democratic process of the ANC that encourages that democracy should prevail," Manganye said.

Manganye said he had not received any information relating to another mayoral candidate in the upcoming congress.

He said it was the branches who would pronounce on that. But it had become public knowledge that Dada Morero, the current secretary general of the region was also contesting the chairperson position.

"It is branches that decide on things like that," he said.

It was not clear if Moerane would be afforded a special funeral as a former mayor of the city. Moerane will be remembered for his role in trying to get Soweto and other townships out of the hands of Eskom.

He had been lobbying for City Power to supply electricity to places like Soweto, Thembisa, Orange Farm and Sandton, Moerane is expected to be buried in Johannesburg on Sunday,

According to Moerane's family his accident was caused by a rock that he drove into at Bowling Avenue. He was on his way home from a meeting to his home in Bryanston when his car came across a rock.

The family denied that there was any foul play related to Moerane's accident.

There had been murmurings of witchcraft among some members of the ANC Joburg region. Some rumours also claimed that Moerane's car had been tampered with. But all of this has been dismissed by his family.