By Lehlohonolo Lehana.
Former City of Johannesburg mayor Mpho Moerane has died after he succumbed to injuries in hospital.
Moerane had been in the Netcare Milpark Hospital in Johannesburg for a week after he was badly injured in a crash last Monday whilst on his way home.
The news was confirmed by his family spokesperson Mike Maile on Thursday afternoon during the media briefing.
Moerane was born in the famous Alexandra township. He started off as an electrician at Eskom until around 2006 and worked his way into the world of business and ultimately politics.
At the same time, he served as an official of the ANC in the region after being elected treasurer in 2018.
The ANC in Johannesburg last week postponed its regional elective conference, which was scheduled for this weekend. The conference will now be held at the end of May.
The conference was postponed due to ongoing disputes at various branches in the region.
The postponement of the regional conference was announced after Moerane, who was one of the contenders for the post of regional chair, was involved in the car crash. Moerane was set to contest for the position of party leader position in the elective conference.
In the past few months, the ANC has lost two mayors who both died after ascending to the mayorship position.
The first one was Geoff Makhubo, who died in the middle of last year due to complications related to Covid-19. The second one was Jolidee Matongo, who died in a car accident after spending the day campaigning with President Cyril Ramaphosa in Soweto.
Matongo’s death came a few weeks after Makhubo’s. Moerane was the next mayor, but his reign did not last long because of the short amount of time he had before the 2021 local government elections.
He served on several boards over the years, including Metro Bus, Alexandra Clinic and as a non-executive director at Chancellor House Holdings.
Moerane leaves behind his wife, Fikile, and four children.
Details regarding his memorial service and funeral will be announced in due course.