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News Archive July 2011 Fond farewell to industry leader
| Fond farewell to industry leader |
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| Thursday, 07 July 2011 |
Speakers spoke of Sicelo Mabaso, the late taxi industry leader, as a man of great strength and foresight, a pioneer.
Executive mayor Parks Tau bids farewell to Sicelo Mabaso
SICELO Mabaso was a leader, a family man, a businessman and a man whose heart always sought to do the will of God.
These were the wordsvarious speakers used when they spokeof Mabaso at his memorial service, held on 6 July at Regina Mundi Catholic Church in Pimville, Soweto.
Mabaso was the chairperson of the board of PioTrans, the Rea Vaya Phase 1A bus operating company. He passed away on 30 June.
At the forefront of the transformation of the public transport system in Johannesburg, Mabaso played a key role in the establishment of Rea Vaya's Phase 1A.
He was also the chairperson of a number of other public transport organisations, including Top Six Taxi Management and National Taxi Association.
His children described him as a loving father and a man of great strength. "We were difficult children sometimes, but he always loved us," said his daughter, Andile Mokgatle. She would miss the affectionate names he had for all his children, she added.
Former mayor Amos Masondo and MMC Rehana Moosajee at the memorial service
His elder son, Thulani Mabaso, shared that his father had been expected to die on Wednesday, because his health was most unstable on that day. By Thursday –30 June, the day he passed on – his condition had improved; he had started eating and was responding to medication.
He got up twice that day, he said, and was showing much strength, but after the second time he got up,"he gave up the fight", his son explained.
Executive Mayor Parks Tau was one of the many people who came to pay their respects to the taxi industry leader. Tau gave his condolences to the family and commended Mabaso for his bravery and commitment to building a better Joburg.
"To us he was a father, to us he was also a leader, to us he was an inspiration," Tau said. "We appreciate his contribution and leadership; we also appreciate the type of life he led." SoccerThe former mayor of Joburg, Amos Masondo, was also at the memorial service. For him, Mabaso was a community builder, a man of integrity and a lover of sports, particularly soccer.
Friends and family bid farewell to Sicelo Mabaso
"Mr Mabaso will go down in history as one of the real pioneers," Masondo said. "He was committed to the question of modernising the public transport industry."
He emphasised that it was important to celebrate the lives of men such as Mabaso for their contribution to communities."When we meet in such an occasion, we do so to celebrate life with the view of enriching the lives of those who remain behind."
He was born on 7 June 1944 in KwaQhudebe, Mahlabatini in KwaZulu-Natal, and moved to the city of gold in 1964, to further his studies in theology and business administration. He married Queenie Qamba on 30 June 1978.
He worked for the World/Winna Furnishers as a sales supervisor until 1984. Thereafter, he became the administrative secretary of Moroka Swallows football club, where he remained until 1992, when he moved on to the taxi industry.
But hewas a shareholder in and chairperson of the soccer team until his dying day. Mabaso leaves behind his children, 12 grandchildren, two sisters and a brother.
He will be buried on9 July. His funeral service will start at 8.30am at the Diepkloof Hall in Soweto, and the congregation will proceed to the cemetery at 12.30pm.
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