East London
The African National Congress (ANC) in the Eastern Cape said it has received the news of the passing on of struggle stalwart and former Deputy Minister of Arts & Culture & Deputy Minister of Provincial and Local Government, Comrade Ntombazana Botha on Saturday, 08 November 2025 after she has not been well for some time.
In a statement the ANC said with her passing the ANC Veterans League and the broader Congress movement has lost an organiser, a dedicated servant of the people, a community builder, a gender activist and an ardent advocate for equality in line with the movement’s vision of a non-racial, non-sexist, democratic and united nation.
Gift Ngqondi, the Provincial Spokesperson of the ANC told The Pixley Independent, “A stalwart of our revolution is no more. A mother, a grandmother, a leader of the UDF and a mentor to thousands of younger generations is no more. What she has left behind for us is a legacy to cherish and to honour in action.”
Comrade Ntombazana Botha started her political activism within the trade union movement. She became an Associate member of the South African Allied Workers Union for the period 1980 to 1981. She also served as Secretary of the UDF, East London Region between 1983 and 1984 and as Treasurer of the Border Region between 1985 and 1986.
Comrade Ntombazana Botha became an Organising Secretary of the South African Council of Churches-Border Region from 1986 to 1990 and became a member of the United Women’s Organisations from 1981 to 1989. She also served as a member of the Steering Committee responsible for setting up the United Democratic Front (UDF) in the Border Region in 1983; member and Secretary of the Regional Interim Committee responsible for setting up the African National Congress (ANC) structures in the Border Region in 1990 and as a member of the South Africa National Civic Organisation (SANCO) and Secretary of Zone 8 Mdantsane respectively.
Comrade Botha worked as Regional, Provincial and National Paralegal Training Project Co-ordinator for Lawyers for Human Rights from 1991 to 1996. She was a founder member of the Women’s Development Foundation and served the foundation from 1991 to 2007.
She was a National Convenor of the Independent Forum for electoral education from 1993 to 1994; a member of the Community Education Computer Society from 1996 to 1997 and between 1996 and 1997 she worked for Lawyers for Human Rights Office in East London and she served as a Vice-Chairperson of the Eastern Cape Non-Governmental Organisation (NGO) Coalition from 1996 to 1997.
In July 1997, Comrade Ntombazana Botha was sworn in to an ANC seat in the first post-apartheid Parliament. She represented the South African Parliament at the Inter-Parliament Union Conference in Moscow, Russia in 1998 and she was a Co-Chairperson of the Ad Hoc Committee on Promotion of Equality and Prevention of Unfair Discrimination.
In the next general election in 1999, she was elected to a full term in the National Assembly, representing the Eastern Cape constituency. From 30 May 2001 to 28 April 2004, She served as Deputy Minister of Provincial and Local Government in the government of President Thabo Mbeki. In that capacity she deputized Sydney Mufamadi. She vacated that office after the 2004 general election, in which she was re-elected to her legislative seat.
When he appointed his second-term cabinet after the election, President Mbeki named her as Deputy Minister of Arts and Culture, under Minister Pallo Jordan. She served in that portfolio until the 2009 general election, in which she did not seek re-election to the National Assembly. Even after her retirement from Parliament she continued her political activism within the Congress Movement and served in both the ANC Veterans League PEC in the Eastern Cape and the ANC Provincial List Committee for the 2021 Local government elections.
According to Ngqondi Botha inspired a generation of leaders who have since swelled the ranks of the democratic movement and our government, “To us she has left huge footprints that tracks our history of suffering, and resilience under immeasurable harassment and dehumanization under apartheid.
“Mama Botha was undoubtedly one of the most accomplished courageous women leaders who championed the struggle against apartheid. She fought tirelessly to break the disempowering gender divide in our society and contributed through her entire life to the noble fight against racial segregation and class exploitation.
“A determined advocate and agitator for the empowerment of women and gender equality, Comrade Botha will be best remembered for her unrelenting commitment to the fight against gender based violence and her resolute belief in the ANC and the ANC Women’s League as reliable tools in the hands of our people to effect fundamental and far-reaching transformation in the struggle for the total liberation and emancipation of women in South Africa.
“Her commitment and dedication to the liberation of the majority of South Africans will always be cherished, remembered and celebrated.”
The African National Congress sends its sincere condolences to Comrade Ntombazana Botha’s family and friends.
