Daughter of the late Zanele kaMagwaza-Msibi, Gugu Gumede, has described her mother as a strong and resilient woman.
The National Freedom Party (NFP) leader is being laid to rest in Ulundi in northern KwaZulu-Natal (KZN) on Saturday.
She died of cardiac arrest at the age of 59 earlier this week.
Gumede says her mother defied the odds in politics and in her personal recovery following her stroke.
“My mother was the strongest woman I knew. My mother was fun, my mother was laughter and today she lies here. I say my mother is a King. She is a above even a Queen. My mother did not choose who to work for and today her work speaks for itself. My mother is the strongest woman and one of the strongest politicians in South Africa.”
Video: funeral service of Zanele kaMagwaza-Msibi
The Inkatha Freedom Party’s (IFP), Nhlanhla Msimang added his voice to the tributes for the late NFP leader.
“We are also saying condolences to Prince Buthelezi because he has lost a daughter that he personally groomed. As the IFP, we respect the leadership of the Magwaza Msibi and her integrity as a resident of Zululand. Myself, I won’t deny the great role she played as the Zululand Mayor nor the role she played as the Deputy Minister,” says Msimang.
The NFP’s Jeremiah Mavundla says the late party leader Zanele kaMagwaza-Msibi died while her party battled its leadership woes in court.
“When we got to the NFP, things changed. Magwaza is lying here today. She’s still in court in Pietermaritzburg. There are two cases that were opened by the NFP members because we refuse to understand that the power of being a leader is found at an elective conference, not in court,” says Mavundla.
