The South African Democratic Teachers Union (SADTU) is devastated by the sudden demise of a cadre, a revolutionary and an education activist serving in both Higher and Basic Education Portfolio Committees - Comrade Crosby Moni.

Comrade Crosby passed on yesterday, Sunday, 22 December 2013, after a short illness. SADTU sends its heartfelt condolences to the family, friends and comrades of our fallen revolutionary, to our alliance and national liberation movement, to our country as a whole and the working class all over the world.

We are deeply pained by the loss of such a committed and experienced politician especially on matters of education; a humble people`s servant and an outstanding activist.

Comrade Moni was very instrumental in ensuring that the implementation of the SADTU 2030 Vision was a success. He engaged with the 2030 Vision during Political Education Workshops conducted jointly by the SACP and SADTU. He understood that SADTU has entered its third decade of existence with a strategic challenge of accelerating the human resource development assignment of the National Democratic Revolution.

SADTU General Secretary Mugwena Maluleke described Cde Moni as a man who valued education; “As an experienced political activist, he shared our country`s vision of improving the quality of education and that, the centrality of education in the growth and development of society is being foregrounded above all other important variables,” Maluleke said.   

This humble servant of our people truly believed that SADTU should play a leading role in providing leadership in the genuine democratisation of our society. He honestly engaged SADTU in using education as developmental tool to build a learning nation that value human life.

We will remember him as a leader who genuinely believed that national cohesion and non-racialisation of society should be receiving impetus and attention as key components of the NDR and that quality public education is the instrument that can achieve this goal.

Cde Moni would have led us in celebrating our twenty years of political freedom in 2014, with tangible advances to improve the lives of the poor and the working class while not exaggerating the challenges we are facing as the Alliance and government.

He will be sorely missed by all within the Tripartite Alliance for his honesty, discipline, political knowledge, and humility. He was a champion of the rights of workers and prioritized the unity of workers organized under the banner of COSATU..

We send out deepest and heartfelt condolences to his wife Nokwakha, three sons Manyano, Nkqubela, Bonga and two daughters Nonkosi and Bongeka, his friends, fellow comrades and the entire alliance.

ISSUED BY:  SADTU Secretariat