“We mourn with the Manuel family and wish to extend our condolences to comrade Trevor, his sisters, and Mrs Manuel’s 10 grandchildren and eight great-grandchildren,” said Nalumango.
She said Mrs Manuel, a former garment worker, was widowed in 1969, when her future struggle activist son was 13.
“She raised Trevor and his sisters Pamela, Beryl and Renecia as a single parent,” said Nalumango.
“Years ago, Mrs Manuel said in an interview about her life that her son’s political activism prior to 1994 was 'particularly stressful for me. He was always either on the run from the security police or in detention. I would never in my wildest dreams have imagined that the years of anguish would culminate in him being elected as a cabinet minister in the government of national unity.'
“This quote from Mrs Manuel encapsulates the life of activists fighting for change in SA, as well as the harsh and cruel way in which the apartheid regime tried to stop them.
“We salute Mrs Manuel and mothers like her who gave their children to our struggle. But they went beyond giving their offspring, they also joined and supported them. We will be forever grateful to all the Mrs Manuels of our country.” - TimesLIVE
Trevor Manuel's mother dies of Covid-19 days after 94th birthday
Image: Gallo Images/Oryx Media Archive
The mother of former finance minister Trevor Manuel has died from Covid-19, four days after celebrating her 94th birthday.
Philma Manuel died on Thursday, according to a statement from the ANC's coordinator in the Western Cape, Ronalda Nalumango.
“We mourn with the Manuel family and wish to extend our condolences to comrade Trevor, his sisters, and Mrs Manuel’s 10 grandchildren and eight great-grandchildren,” said Nalumango.
She said Mrs Manuel, a former garment worker, was widowed in 1969, when her future struggle activist son was 13.
“She raised Trevor and his sisters Pamela, Beryl and Renecia as a single parent,” said Nalumango.
“Years ago, Mrs Manuel said in an interview about her life that her son’s political activism prior to 1994 was 'particularly stressful for me. He was always either on the run from the security police or in detention. I would never in my wildest dreams have imagined that the years of anguish would culminate in him being elected as a cabinet minister in the government of national unity.'
“This quote from Mrs Manuel encapsulates the life of activists fighting for change in SA, as well as the harsh and cruel way in which the apartheid regime tried to stop them.
“We salute Mrs Manuel and mothers like her who gave their children to our struggle. But they went beyond giving their offspring, they also joined and supported them. We will be forever grateful to all the Mrs Manuels of our country.” - TimesLIVE
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