Tito Mboweni tributes stream in  

The ‘duke of Magoebaskloof’ hailed for his role in ‘stabilising SA’s macro-economic landscape’.

Following the sudden passing of Tito Mboweni – SA’s former finance minister and governor of the South African Reserve Bank (Sarb) on Saturday evening – tributes have been streaming in from several quarters.

Mboweni, who retired from active politics in August 2021 following a cabinet reshuffle, died after a short illness.

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Read: Tito Mboweni dies at 65

He also served as SA’s first labour minister in 1994, during the Nelson Mandela presidency. Besides his life in politics as a long-time member of the ANC and an anti-apartheid activist, Mboweni chaired several boards in between his ministerial stints in government.

Before President Cyril Ramaphosa appointed him finance minister in 2018, Mboweni was chair of the Tourism Business Council of SA (TBCSA). Mboweni also formerly chaired the board of AngloGold Ashanti, was a former international advisor to Goldman Sachs and non-executive chairman of Nampak Limited.

After exiting government in 2021, Mboweni was reappointed chair of troubled JSE-listed property group Accelerate Property Fund (APF) in early 2022. He was chair of APF when it was listed on the JSE back in December 2013.

Mboweni, who grew up in Limpopo, dubbed himself as ‘the duke of Magoebaskloof’ on x (formerly Twitter) and often proudly punted the beauty of the area.

He also became an unofficial ambassador of tin fish brand Lucky Star, after he started pushing his cooking efforts on social media.

On Sunday the South African Revenue Service (Sars) hailed Mboweni’s “integral [role in] SA’s macro-economic stability”.

“Sars pays special tribute to the late Tito Mboweni, who helped to stabilise our macro-economic landscape in the pivotal roles he played as Governor of the Sarb and Minister of Finance, working closely with Sars as part of the broader finance family,” the tax agency said in a statement.

Leadership

“For ten years, from 1999 to 2009, he was the Governor of the Reserve Bank, a decade that coincided with the 10 years served by the late Pravin Gordhan as Commissioner of Sars.

“It was this decade of stability in leadership, along with Trevor Manuel as the then Minister of Finance, that helped Sars in its strategic repositioning and modernisation as a world-class revenue authority,” it added.

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“No other portfolio of government had such stability in leadership over such a long time, which was essential for building our democracy and strengthening institutions such as Sars and the Reserve Bank,” Sars said.

Edward Kieswetter, the current Commissioner of Sars, also paid homage to Mboweni’s contribution to the fight against apartheid.

“Mboweni willingly made the sacrifices necessary to realise our goal of freedom in a non-racial, non-sexist and democratic order. His generation was known as the ‘young lions’ because of their bravery and selflessness. For that, Sars salutes him for his fight against minority rule and for building our democracy,” he said.

“His leadership as Minister of Finance came at the most important juncture in the history of Sars after it had suffered a deliberate and systematic decimation of its governance in pursuit of corrupt intent.” ADVERTISEMENT: CONTINUE READING BELOW

“It was the late Minister Mboweni acting on the recommendation of the Committee that proposed to the President [Ramaphosa] to appoint me as Commissioner of Sars. Since May 2019, I had the pleasure of working alongside Mboweni, as we started the journey to rebuild Sars, post the period of state capture,” added Kieswetter.

“In the lead-up to the recent elections, Tito called to encourage me to continue the work we are doing at Sars, stressing how important it is to never give up in strengthening our democracy,” the Commissioner noted.

‘Man of integrity’

“Throughout the years and in various high-profile roles Mr Mboweni led, from Labour Minister, Reserve Bank Governor, and recently Finance Minister, we found him to be a man who operated with integrity,” said Alan Mukoki, CEO of the South African Chamber of Commerce and Industry.

“He was known to have a sharp intellect, was transparent in his dealings with collective business, and had a deep understanding of matters affecting his portfolios, South Africa and its economy and its challenges.

“His sterling work in pioneering the establishment of Nedlac and bringing various stakeholders such as big business, big labour, big government, and community groups together to debate policy, regulations, and legislation that affected South Africa will remain one of the major highlights of his legacy,” added Mukoki.

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“As Governor of the Reserve Bank, he brought a high level of transparency and credibility to South Africa’s monetary policy platform and made the Sarb one of the highly regarded central banks globally… [Mboweni] made a significant impact and contribution to South Africa and was highly regarded in the global financial system,” he added.

The TBCSA said Mboweni played a key role in amplifying the voice of the private sector tourism industry, including highlighting the sector’s significant contributions to the country’s economy during his two-year stint as chair of the organisation.

“Mboweni’s extensive experience from his roles in public service, academia, and the private sector, gave us invaluable insights in not only guiding our industry but also fostering collaboration across all spheres of the economy, for the benefit of the nation,” commented the TBCSA’s sitting TBCSA chairman Jerry Mabena.

“We have lost a leader and compatriot who has served our nation as an activist, economic policy innovator and champion of labour rights,” President Cyril Ramaphosa said in a statement on Saturday evening.

“Tito Mboweni distinguished himself in different strategic roles in the private sector and was a flag bearer in global forums for our economy and developing economies more broadly,” he added.

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