NFP founding leader Zanele kaMagwaza-Msibi dies

The founder and leader of the National Freedom Party (NFP), Zanele kaMagwaza-Msibi, has passed away. She was 59 years old.

NFP MP Ahmed Shaik Emam confirmed to eNCA her passing, saying she died on Monday morning at a Durban hospital.

“I’ve always been motivated by the way she’s conducted herself and how she selflessly served the interests of the most vulnerable and the poorest in the country, particularly in areas where she governed as a mayor like in Zululand.

“In November 2014, she had a massive stroke and she had not really recovered from that. However, despite her challenges, she continued to serve our people,” he said.

Family spokesperson Canaan Mdletshe confirmed that KaMagwaza-Msibi passed away due to cardiac arrest.

KaMagwaza-Msibi had not been well for some time after suffering a stroke back in 2014.

She previously served as the country’s deputy minister of science and technology between 2014 and 2019.

KaMagwaza-Msibi’s biography

KaMagwaza-Msibi spent most of her political career as a member of the Inkatha Freedom Party (IFP) before breaking away from the party in 2011 to form the NFP. She was also the national chair of the IFP and its candidate for the premier of KZN in the 2009 general election.

KaMagwaza-Msibi is a former school principal and she has occupied several senior administrative positions in municipal councils as well as serving as the mayor of Zululand District Municipality in KwaZulu-Natal.

Tributes have been pouring in on social media following the news about her passing:

Compiled by Thapelo Lekabe