By Lehlohonolo Lehana.
Gauteng’s Member of the Executive Council (MEC) for Finance and Economic Development, Lebogang Maile is mourning the passing of his son, Pholosho Maile.
In his social media post, Maile wrote: “It with deep sadness and heavy hearts that we inform you of the death of my son, Pholosho Tau Mokubedi Maile, who passed away on Saturday, 17 August 2024. Pholosho’s untimely death has visited profound pain on our entire family and relatives.
The details of the memorial service and funeral will be shared in due course.”. The MEC did not provide further details on the cause of his son’s death.
Maile was appointed Gauteng MEC for Finance and Economic Development after the elections. Prior to that, he was the province’s MEC for Human Settlement.
In 2009, Maile became a member of the Gauteng Provincial Legislature, serving in the Education, Finance and Scrutiny and Subordinate Legislation committees. In 2010, he became MEC for Sports, Arts, Culture and Recreation and was a strong advocate of development as well as access to sports and library. In June 2014, Maile became MEC for Economic Development and later his responsibilities were extended to include Environment, Agriculture and Rural Development.
In 2019 he was deployed as MEC for Human Settlements, Urban Planning and CoGTA. In October 2022, the portfolio under his responsibility was reconfigured to Human Settlements and Infrastructure Development. He Chairs the Governance Cluster in the province. In September 2022, Maile was elected as Vice President of the Forum of Regions of Africa at its inaugural sitting in the city of Saidia, which is part of Casablanca State in Morocco.
Maile penned and published the book Never too young to lead, which he says is a clarion call for the youth of South Africa to rise.
His message to the youth and anyone who is considering pursuing their studies further is that they are never too young to lead, and they are never too old to learn.