UNiSA to confer honorary doctorates to former NUM leaders James Motlatsi and Elijah Barayi, Friday November 06, 2020

Press Alert, 06 November 2020

The National Union of Mineworkers (NUM) welcomes the gesture demonstrated by the University of South Africa (Unisa) to confer honorary doctoral degrees tonight at 6pm (06 November 2020) to the founding President Dr James Motlatsi and posthumously to the Deputy President comrade Elijah Barayi.

The university is doing this in recognition of the immense contribution these giant trade unionists made not only in the struggle of workers but also in the politics of this country.

Dr James Motlatsi is currently the Executive Chairman of Teba Limited. He has been associated with the South African mining industry since 1970. He was the first President of the NUM and a founding member of the Congress of South African Trade Unions.

The late Elijah Barayi was a founding member and became the first NUM Deputy President in 1982. Barayi was involved in civil disobedience movements in the 1950s. In 1985 Barayi also helped start the Congress of South African Trade Unions, an umbrella group representing more than a million black workers, and served as its first President.

Under their guidance, the NUM grew to be the biggest in Africa at a time when the repressive apartheid regime was in a full fight in suppressing the rights of black workers. All the General Secretaries who served with them at the NUM later became either Presidents of the ANC and or the country or Secretaries-General of the ANC.

The NUM National Executive Committee members who served with these two giants and the current leaders will grace the occasion.

The details of the graduation ceremony are as follows

Venue: ZK Matthews Hall, Winnie Madikizela-Mandela Building, Unisa Muckleneuk Campus in Pretoria.
Time: 6pm
Date: 06 November 2020 (tonight)

Members of the media are invited to attend and report.

For more informatiton, please contact:

David Sipunzi: NUM General Secretary: 082 883 7293
Livhuwani Mammburu: NUM National Spokesperson: 083 809 3257
Luphert Chilwane: NUM Media Officer: 083 809 3255

Address:
7 Rissik Street.
Cnr Frederick,
Johannesburg 2001
Tel: 011 377 2111
Web: www.num.org.za

Twitter: @Num Media

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/pages/NUM/100860023402167