glF coRneR

RemembeRing nkosiphendule kolisile

without licences and therefore the Liquor Board should introduce a system to control and regulate all small liquor traders. During his year in office, MEC Kolisile showed his commitment in reshaping the industry, changing Shebeen Permits to Shebeen Licences.

The late Gauteng MEC of Economic Development, Nkosiphendule Kolisile

Our first encounter with the late MEC Nkosiphendule Kolisile was in February 2012, when he was the chairperson of the Economic Development Portfolio Committee during an Economic Indaba in Gauteng. After the workshop we approached him concerning problems and challenges we are faced with in our sector regarding liquor control and the draft Liquor Regulations Bill. He advised us that if we didn’t want the drafted Bill to be approved in its current form we should submit a petition to the legislature. After the submission of the petition, we saw the replacement of MEC Qedani Mahlangu by MEC Kolisile. During his first address to the liquor traders in Kliptown in October 2012, he said, “I want to work with you to change the negative perception people have about the liquor trade.” We had our first meeting with him on 12 December 2012 when we presented our plans and strategy to fight the irresponsible sale and consumption of alcohol and through his department, he embraced our ideas and organised a one-day workshop for us on responsible liquor trading. “MEC Kolisile opened the door for liquor traders and he listened to us. Before his death he was supposed to lead us in a responsible liquor trading programme. This is one of the things we are going to remember him for,” says Fanny Mokoena, chairperson of the Gauteng Liquor Forum.

When there was a proposal to stop the sale of liquor on Sundays, the MEC put the matter to a public debate which took place at Uncle Tom’s Hall in Soweto, where the people and traders voted overwhelmingly against the Sunday ban. The MEC said, “We proposed to the Gauteng public that we would give due and genuine consideration to all the objections raised and that we would not march forward with proposals that are against the will of the people.” He was a people’s leader, because he always listened to the people. We were fortunate to have been called to eKasi FM where we shared the platform with the MEC and reiterated our commitment as the GLF to assist the government in restructuring and reshaping the liquor Industry. We told him that irresponsible traders are people

Obituary (1973-2013)

• MEC Kolisile was a member of the

African National Congress (ANC) since 1991. • He served in ANC structures at various levels including being a

Branch Executive

Committee member. • He was also the leader of the

South African Communist Party in

Gauteng. He once worked as the

SACP assistant national organiser. • Before his appointment as MEC for Economic Development, he served as the chairperson of the

Economic Development Portfolio committee in the Gauteng

Provincial Legislature. • MEC Kolisile previously served as a shop steward for the

National Union of Mineworkers in Mpumalanga. • MEC Kolisile held a National

Diploma in Project Management from Damelin as well as a

Certificate in Labour Studies from the Durban University of

Technology. He also studied

Labour Relations at the University of Pretoria. • MEC Kolisile and his two bodyguards died in a car accident in the Free State Province on 20

July 2013 and he was laid to rest on 3 August 2013 in his home town in the Eastern Cape. He’s survived by his wife Phozisa and five children.