ANC and Parliament mourn passing of MP Mxolisi Sokatsha

The African National Congress (ANC) said it is sad and shocked by the passing of Member of Parliament, 57-year-old Mxolisi Sokatsha.

Sokatsha passed away on Friday night in a car accident en-route to the Northern Cape where he hails from.

Sokatsha was an ANC representative in the National Assembly, and had been a member of the Portfolio Committee of Health since joining Parliament in 2019.

“In his passing, the ANC Parliamentary Caucus has lost a revolutionary giant, a man who became the first Mayor of Richmond in the post-apartheid South Africa between 1994 and 1996,” the ANC said.

Parliament also said it was shocked by the passing of Sokatsha.

The presiding officers said the passing of Sokatsha, particularly under such tragic circumstances, was devastating and painful.

“Parliament and the people of this country have been robbed of a devoted public representative with an untiring commitment to the service of the people. His contributions to the various parliamentary sittings and committee meetings advanced and strengthened the oversight mandate of Parliament.”

“His experience, particularly in health, greatly bolstered parliamentary oversight and the institution’s role during the battle against the Covid-19 pandemic,” the presiding officers said.

Sokatsha, a trained educator and accountant, served in the Northern Cape legislature from 2003 to 2019 in various capacities including MEC for Health, Social Development, Sports, Arts and Culture as well as Roads and Public Works before becoming a member of the National Assembly in the sixth Parliament where he assumed office on 22 May 2019.

During the 1980s Sokatsha was involved in the establishment of the Midlands and Karoo Youth Congress, affiliates of SAYCO and served as the Chairperson of Sasco, also becoming a Sadtu chairperson when he joined the teaching fraternity.

He later served as the chairperson of the ANC’s Pixley ka Seme region for three terms from 1997 to 1999.