Minister in the Presidency, Mondli Gungubele, has expressed sadness at the tragic passing of Free State Education MEC, Tate Makgoe, and his bodyguard, Warrant Officer Vuyo Mdi, in a car crash on the N1, outside Winburg.

The pair passed away in the early hours of Sunday morning.

“Makgoe was a visionary. He has served in various portfolios as a Member of Free State Executive Council since 1994 and was appointed in 2009 as Free State education MEC. Since his appointment, the Free State province has become the best in the country in Matric performance.

“The MEC will be remembered for his confidence that he displayed in the learners, in that he boldly declared in 2022: ‘We are destined to succeed. Nothing will stop us’. That is the spirit and determination that he left behind, and one that we must embrace as government leaders,” Gungubele said on Monday.

The Minister said the MEC was known for strategising, identifying the gaps and ensuring all role players, including teachers, leadership, learners and administrators, worked together.

“He firmly believed in raising the bar higher, and that very child has the potential to achieve anything. As such, part of the focus of his strategy to improve the education sector in the Free State was on rural and township-based schools. Under his leadership, the department had also adopted chartered accountants, economists and engineers to assist township and rural schools,” he said.

Makgoe was an engineering graduate from Technikon Vaal Triangle and holds a Bachelor of Commerce degree from the University of South Africa (UNISA).

He later obtained an BCom Honours from the University of the Free State and a Master’s degree in Business Leadership from UNISA.

In 1984, he left South Africa to join the African National Congress (ANC) military wing, Umkhonto we Sizwe, in exile.

“He lived a life of sacrifice, was devoted to the disadvantaged and marginalised, and was passionate about eradicating poverty. He served the Free State province and South Africa with distinction,” Gungubele said.

Source: South African Government News Agency