Skuta Alfred Mtsi ( 1950–1951 12 July 2020) was a South African politician who served as the mayor of Buffalo City, South Africa. Prior to his mayoral tenure he served as a member of the

Eastern Cape Provincial Legislature The Eastern Cape Provincial Legislature is the primary legislative body of the South African province of Eastern Cape. It is unicameral in its composition, and elects the premier and the provincial cabinet from among the members of the leading par ...

and later served as the Speaker of the Buffalo City council before his death.

Early life

Skuta Alfred Mtsi was born in 1950–1951 and grew up in Ncerha Village, outside of

East London East or Orient is one of the four cardinal directions or points of the compass. It is the opposite direction from west and is the direction from which the Sun rises on the Earth. Etymology As in other languages, the word is formed from the f ...

. He attended Hebron Primary School, Mzimkhulu Higher Primary and Gcisa Commercial High School. He was expelled from school in 11th grade for attending an "illegal gathering" with 19 other students. He graduated with a Master's degree in public administration and an advanced

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in public administration and management from the University of Fort Hare, a certificate in governance and leadership from the University of South Africa, and a certificate in advanced governance and public leadership from the University of the Witwatersrand.

Career

Mtsi became involved in politics during the Soweto uprising in 1976. In 1983, he started working for Mercedes-Benz. In 1989, he served as a shop steward of NUMSA. In 1991, he served as chairman of COSATU and served as chairman of COSATU in the Border Region from 1992 to 1993.

Politics

In 1990, Mtsi became a member of the African National Congress and the South African Communist Party. He served as a member of the

from 1999 to 2014. In June 2015, Mtsi was inaugurated as Mayor of Buffalo City, South Africa to fill the vacancy created by Zukiswa Ncitha's resignation. He served until August 2016. In 2016, Mtsi was elected to serve as Speaker of the Buffalo City council.

Death

On 7 July 2020, Mtsi was hospitalized at the Life Beacon Bay Hospital in East London after contracting COVID-19 during the

COVID-19 pandemic in South Africa The COVID-19 pandemic in South Africa is part of the ongoing pandemic of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) caused by the severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2). On 5 March 2020, Minister of Health Zweli Mkhize had conf ...

. He died on 12 July. Mtsi was the third member of the Buffalo City council to die from the disease after Zukiswa Mankayi and Gideon Norexe.

Electoral history

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Mtsi, Alfred 1950s births 2020 deaths Members of the Eastern Cape Provincial Legislature Mayors of places in South Africa 21st-century South African politicians Place of birth missing University of Fort Hare alumni University of South Africa alumni University of the Witwatersrand alumni African National Congress politicians Deaths from the COVID-19 pandemic in South Africa Mayors of Buffalo City