Ronnie Mamoepa 'had a special heart'

He was 56. 

Mamoepa, a former political prisoner and member of the Gauteng provincial legislature, was a highly regarded and accomplished public servant and veteran communicator who served the African National Congress (ANC) and various departments in government.

At the time of his death, Mamoepa was spokesperson Deputy President Cyril Ramaphosa.

Communications Minister Ayanda Dlodlo says she has lost a colleague, a comrade and a friend.

"We can either do nothing, or hope that someone else will be the change we want to see. Or, like Ronnie, we can take the proverbial bull by the horns, lead and become the change we want to see.

"We will remember him every time, and especially when we walk into the GCIS Media Centre, which will now be called the Ronnie Mamoepa Media Centre," Dlodlo says.

The South African National Editors Forum's Sam Mkokeli says Mamoepa comes from a special kind of generation of spokespeople, like Themba Maseko and Joel Netshitenzhe.

"He had a lot of special skills, in addition to his special heart. He had charisma, which he used almost all the time when he had to break through to send a government message," Mkokeli says.

Mkokeli says Mamoepa never shielded corrupt politicians or incompetent officials.

"He never said, when there was negative press enjoyed by the government, that this was because of the ownership patterns in the media. He understood this. At some stage he wanted to own a newspaper, because he understood that it was important for Africans to own newspapers," Mkokeli says.