President Cyril Ramaphosa has declared a Special Official Funeral to honour the late struggle stalwart and esteemed member of the Order of Luthuli in Gold, Ntate John Nkadimeng.
Nkadimeng passed away on 06 August 2020, at the age of 93.
President Ramaphosa expressed his deepest condolences to the family, friends and comrades of Nkadimeng whom the President visited at his home in Johannesburg in April 2019.
“We have lost a remarkable veteran of our country's liberation struggle, who was a selfless, exemplary and courageous stalwart who contributed immensely to South Africa's democracy," said the President.
Bab’Nkadimeng 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 to exile, taking refuge in numerous neighbouring countries.
Nkadimeng served in the African National Congress’s political and military council and served as the 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).
In August 1995, he was appointed as South Africa's Ambassador to the People's Republic of Cuba.
Funeral arrangements for Bab’Nkadimeng
President Ramaphosa declared a Category 1 Special Official Funeral in honour of Nkadimeng on Friday.
The Category 1 funeral, to be held in Johannesburg on Friday, 14 August 2020, will entail ceremonial elements provided by the South African National Defence Force.
The funeral service will be held on Friday, 14 August 2020 at Marks Park Sports Club, Emmarentia, Randburg starting from 10h00.
The burial will take place on the same day at Westpark Cemetery, Johannesburg.
The President has directed that the National Flag be flown at half-mast at all flag stations until the evening of 14 August 2020.
Messages of condolence
For the convenience of those who may want to send messages of condolence to the family and friends of Nkadimeng, government has made available an online tribute page as well as an email address that may be utilised for such purposes:
Tribute page: https://www.gov.za/JohnNkadimeng
Email address: condolences@gcis.gov.za
Broadcast and live feed
In accordance with the COVID-19 alert Level 3 regulations currently in place which prescribe that attendance at a funeral is limited to 50 persons, only a limited number will be permitted to attend the funeral service.
To accommodate mourners who may not be able to attend the funeral physically, the funeral service will broadcast live on the SABC and other major broadcast channels.
In addition, arrangements have been made for both services to be streamed live on the following government online platforms:
Twitter: https://twitter.com/GovernmentSA
Facebook: https://web.facebook.com/GovernmentZA
YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/user/GovernmentZA
The President has also directed that the national flag be flown at half-mast at all flag stations until the evening of 14 August 2020. – SAnews.gov.za
