‘We’ll forever remember Moerane’s zeal in serving people of Alexandra’
Mayor Phalatse, Joburg colleagues also pay their respects
A quiet suburban street in Bryanston, northern Johannesburg, was a hive of activity on Thursday as multitudes of mourners came to pay their respects and to offer condolences to the family of former Joburg mayor Mpho Moerane.
Moerane died on Wednesday after a horrific car accident last week and had spent days fighting for his life at Netcare Milpark Hospital where he died.
Alexandra community leader Lydia Tlale, who was dressed in full ANC regalia, expressed extreme heartbreak at Moerane’s passing, adding that she could not sleep after hearing the terrible news.
“We really felt that we had to come cry here with the family because how quickly and suddenly this tragedy happened has been hard for us to come to terms with. These young children should be burying us but instead we are burying them. It’s just so heavy to deal with,” she said.
Tlale described Moerane, who was also from Alexandra, as a people’s person.
“We have worked very closely with this young man. We have seen his zeal and drive to serve the people of Alexandra.
“Moerane and I are from the same branch in Alexandra and I watched him serve the people with no excuses. We can now point at a place called River Park in Alexandra today because of his efforts.
“Moerane is originally from an area called Beirut that was taken by force by the Zulus [who were hostel dwellers] during the 1990s battles between the ANC and IFP. He and many others were left homeless but he fought to get people houses in River Park.
“He worked for the people of Alexandra,” Tlale said, also suggesting that the elders of the party plan a ceremony to appease the ancestors of the party.
Visibly distraught Johannesburg mayor Mpho Phalatse, in the company of the speaker of council, Vasco da Gama, also visited Moerane’s home. The DA pair and other mourners watched the Johannesburg metro police motorcade go past Moerane’s house three times in honour of the fallen politician.
Da Gama said: “It is the speaker’s responsibility that when any councillor passes away that we come and [discuss] funeral [options with the family]. In this case, because councillor Mpho Moerane was the previous mayor before this term, we had to come and offer the family a civic funeral, which will take place this coming Sunday.”
The funeral arrangements, according to Da Gama, are a collective effort between the speaker’s office, the family and the ANC.
At national level, a civic funeral has a military parade while at a local level metro officers with one of the fire trucks carrying the body will lead the way for the procession.
“We will start on the day with the family and the ANC giving their respects to the late councillor and then after that it would be an official funeral which would start off with the speaker and then the necessary churches,” he said.
Meanwhile, a memorial service will be held at the Alexsan Kopano Centre in Alexandra on Friday, after a wreath-laying ceremony at the accident scene at noon.
Moerane will be buried at the Fourways Memorial Park.