21 AUGUST 1966 - 20 FEBRUARY 1998
Tshepiso had a long and passionate involvement with local government in South
Africa. He played a pivotal role in laying the foundations for local government
transformation, especially in Johannesburg through his involvement in the
Central Witwatersrand Metropolitan Chamber's Working Groups and as a member of
the Strategic Management Team in the office of the Gauteng Minister of
Development Planning, Environment and Works in 1993-94.
Tshepiso started his employ with the Johannesburg Council in February 1995 as a
strategic adviser to the chief executive officer and in May 1996 he was
appointed as the Strategic Executive : Metropolitan Planning, Urbanisation and
Environmental Management, a title that he always found too cumbersome for his
liking, although a job he found challenging and exciting.
One of the last and most significant achievements of his working life, of which
he was particularly proud, was his management and coordination role in the
drafting of this White Paper on Local Government, which is a document that will
shape our future in years to come. Tshepiso was the chairperson of the White
Paper Working Committee and seconded to the Department of Constitutional
Affairs on a part-time basis to facilitate this process. He finished the final
draft of the White Paper two days before he died, but unfortunately could not
see it through Cabinet and Parliament.
Tshepiso has touched many people's lives in both his professional career and
personal life and he will be sorely missed by all of us. Much of his thinking
and work was focused on enabling change that would benefit those involved. This
was particularly evident in the work he did for urban planning and for local
government as a whole. To put it in his own words, the day before he died:
"I am proud to be a transitionocrat."
Tshepiso is survived by both his parents, eight brothers, two sisters, his
partner Rhona, his daughter Malika and son Kgotso.
Robala ka Kgotso - Letebele
White
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