Former activist Essop Pahad passes away at 84
Former apartheid activist and minister in the presidency Essop Pahad has passed away at the age of 84. Pahad reportedly passed away in his sleep. PAHAD WORKED CLOSELY WITH THABO MBEKI Pahad served as a minister from 1999 till he tendered his resignation in 2008 following the ousting of former President Thabo Mbeki. Born in the […]
Former apartheid activist and minister in the presidency Essop Pahad has passed away at the age of 84. Pahad reportedly passed away in his sleep.
PAHAD WORKED CLOSELY WITH THABO MBEKI
Pahad served as a minister from 1999 till he tendered his resignation in 2008 following the ousting of former President Thabo Mbeki.
Born in the then Transvaal Province (now North West), Essop is the elder brother of former deputy minister Aziz Pahad.
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40 YEARS IN POLITICS
Pahad has had a long career in politics, beginning when he joined the Transvaal Indian Youth Congress in 1958. Four years later in 1962 he was arrested for organizing a strike follow the banning of the ANC. In 1964, he was banned and went into exile.
Pahad entered into government after the 1994 elections and served as a parliamentary counsellor to the then deputy president Mbeki. The ascension of Mbeki as president saw Pahad become his minister.
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Pahad held a Bachelor of Arts in political science from Wits. He then obtained his Master’s of Arts in African politics as well as his PHD from the University of Sussex in England.