Struggle icon and trade unionist John Nkadimeng has been laid to rest at the West Park cemetery. He died last week at the age of 93 after a long illness.
He was given the Special Official Funeral Category One.
Nkadimeng spent his life fighting for the rights of workers and trying to unite the trade union federations in the country.
Earlier President Cyril Ramaphoa delivered the eulogy in his honour. He used the occasion to denounce corruption and urged today’s leaders to follow on footsteps of Nkadimeng and his peers.
The President said the best way to preserve the legacy of the struggle icon is to restore the culture of selflessness and ethical leadership.
President Cyril Ramaphosa delivers the eulogy:
In August 1995, Nkadimeng was appointed South Africa’s Ambassador to the Republic of Cuba.
The stalwart was among the 156 Congress activists who were detained during the Defiance Campaign in 1952 and charged with treason in the 1956 Treason Trial.
He also went into exile, taking refuge in numerous neighbouring countries.
He served in the African National Congress’s Political and Military Council and as Chairperson of the ANC’s Political Committee.
He led the then underground South African Congress of Trade Unions (SACTU), where he also played an instrumental role in the formation of the Congress of South African Trade Unions (COSATU).
He suffered for the freedoms that we enjoy today, he sacrificed, he fought, he led, and he was led. Like so many of the great leaders of our country, he was witness to the poverty and deprivation of rural South Africa. pic.twitter.com/X8XdMGxIPY
— South African Government (@GovernmentZA) August 14, 2020
As SABC’s Abongile Dumako reports, the ANC stalwart isiThwalandwe has been laid to rest next to his son Mahudi at the Westpark Cemetery in Johannesburg:
The 93-year-old has been described as a hero who was for the rights of the working class.
President Ramaphosa declared a Special Official Funeral: Category 1 in his honour and directed that the National Flag be flown at half-mast at all flag stations until the evening of 14 August 2020. The Category 1 funeral entails ceremonial elements provided by the South African National Defence Force.
Full Special Official Funeral service:
