Mthunzi Isaac Vilakazi (23 September 1955 – 16 February 2000) was a South African politician from Mpumalanga. He represented the African National Congress (ANC) in the National Assembly from 1994 until his death in 2000.

Mthunzi Vilakazi
Member of the National Assembly
In office
9 May 1994 – 16 February 2000
ConstituencyMpumalanga
Personal details
Born(1955-09-23)23 September 1955
Died16 February 2000(2000-02-16) (aged 44)
CitizenshipSouth Africa
Political partyAfrican National Congress

Legislative career edit

Vilakazi was born on 23 September 1955.[1] He was elected to the National Assembly in South Africa's first post-apartheid elections in 1994[2] and gained re-election in 1999, representing the Mpumalanga constituency.[1]

Personal life and death edit

He was married to Gloria Vilakazi and lived in Witbank, Mpumalanga.[3] He died on 16 February 2000.[4] Though the ANC refused to comment on the cause of his death, and his wife said that he had died from complications arising from kidney and liver failure,[3] his death coincided with the peak of the HIV/AIDS epidemic in South Africa and was rumoured to be AIDS-related.[5] The rumours triggered debate in Parliament about MPs' role in destigmatising HIV.[3][6]

See also edit

References edit

  1. ^ a b "General Notice: Notice 1319 of 1999 – Electoral Commission: Representatives Elected to the Various Legislatures" (PDF). Government Gazette of South Africa. Vol. 408, no. 20203. Pretoria, South Africa: Government of South Africa. 11 June 1999. Retrieved 26 March 2021.
  2. ^ South Africa: Campaign and Election Report April 26–29, 1994. International Republican Institute. 1994. Retrieved 13 April 2023 – via Yumpu.
  3. ^ a b c "MPs challenged to reveal Aids status". IOL. 13 May 2000. Retrieved 9 May 2023.
  4. ^ "The National Assembly List of Resinations and Nominations". Parliament of South Africa. 2 June 2002. Archived from the original on 2 June 2002. Retrieved 2 April 2023.
  5. ^ "MPs line up for public Aids tests". IOL. 15 May 2000. Retrieved 9 May 2023.
  6. ^ "No dull moment in Parliament". News24. 19 November 2000. Retrieved 9 May 2023.