On Thursday former deputy president David Debede Mabuza sadly departed. Aged 64, his untimely passing deepens the moment of grief.

Mabuza’s extensive record in public affairs offers valuable insights into leadership. This is particularly so since his story is part of South Africa's post-apartheid journey under the leadership of an ANC of which he was a member and leader.

“DD” — as Mabuza was popularly known — was a mathematics teacher who cut his anti-apartheid activism in the Azanian Students Organisation (Azaso) in his youth in the 1980s, and later joined the Congress Movement, led by the ANC.

After the first democratic elections in 1994, he was deployed to the government to help realise the society of the promise of the Freedom Charter, whose 70th anniversary we mark this year. As an ANC deployee in government, Mabuza was one of the early pathfinders of our democracy, whose ingenuity provided the foundation upon which the democratic edifice stands.

Their commitment to the cause of democracy helped to restore the people’s confidence in the government after the erosion of trust during the apartheid era. His effusive and staid disposition proved to be an added advantage in the post-apartheid confidence-building process — without which the democratic government would have struggled to rebuild and sustain the confidence of the people.

In the tradition of the ANC, leadership is a collaborative process. Each leader brings their strengths to bear, while simultaneously mitigating the shortcomings of their colleagues. One has to see oneself as a team player; indeed, as part of a collective with a shared outlook, roles and responsibilities.

In this, Mabuza distinguished himself well, inspiring many around him. He was a man of his word, and I can personally vouch for his dependability. Once he had committed himself to something or a course of action, he stuck to it regardless of the cost or inconvenience to his personal wellbeing.

He was also a man of few words. Yet, when he spoke, his voice carried authority and decisiveness.

To be a team player also means that one should endeavour to be a unifier, a trait that Mabuza possessed in sufficient stock. In the run-up to the 2017 ANC national conference, and after, he was widely associated with the concept and practice of “unity”. He appealed to Mpumalanga and all conference delegates to promote organisational unity and cohesion, in word and in deed.

Unity is essential not only for the ANC. It is of critical importance to all South Africans, black and white. We sink or swim together. There is no better way to achieve national unity than to work towards the South Africa envisioned in the Freedom Charter. History is the work of the hands of more than an individual leader. However, it is nearly impossible to analyse the 2017 conference and its aftermath without the role of Mabuza, among other actors.

Time and emotional distance will favour future generations with a better vantage point from which to look at the conference than we, the delegates. They will hopefully continue to find in Mabuza’s favour for affirming internal party democracy as the lifeblood of the ANC. Loyal and always seeing himself as part of the larger ANC family, DD always subjected himself to party discipline, knowing that an ANC composed of ill-disciplined members would sooner or later become dysfunctional and unfit for purpose.

This is a legacy we should strive to bequeath to future generations in his honour.

Mabuza’s statesmanly demeanour also served him, the ANC and the government well in negotiating the challenging contours of South African politics. His interaction with friend and foe alike was as respectful, considerate and worth learning from — especially in moments of tension and crisis.

Similarly, his composure inspired a deep thoughtfulness, inasmuch as it mirrored it. As a result, DD hardly ever raised his voice. The past three decades have brought the expression that “Rome was not built in a day” into sharper relief. Redressing 342 years of colonial and apartheid injustice is no easy walk and requires all hands on deck.

Sadly, we have lost DD as the task is still in its infancy. In December 2022, I succeeded Mabuza as deputy president of the ANC, and of the country four months later in March 2023. Despite widely reported health challenges, Mabuza had discharged himself diligently in both tasks. I inherited nearly every delegated responsibility on his desk as deputy president. I found that Mabuza had done much, albeit quietly. He simply did what needed to be done, unperturbed by the fact that some doubted him to the point of writing him off to irrelevance.

Leaders across the South Sudanese political divide speak fondly of his successful 2019/20 facilitation efforts, which led to the resolution of the dispute about the country’s number of provinces and their boundaries. Still, he did not beat the drums in celebrating an achievement worthy of peace settlement awards. DD was no medal seeker.

Mabuza would not have been human if he were flawless. Nobody ever is. So, rather than a devil vs angel narrative, his track record as a political actor is probably better appraised in the context of his time and the society which produced him. The true measure of an activist is how they affect the macro-social landscape that forms individuals, more than the temptation to excoriate them, even as it is sometimes unavoidable.

The last word goes to President Cyril Ramaphosa: “The former deputy president deserves our appreciation for his deep commitment to the liberation struggle, and to the nation’s development as an inclusive and prosperous democratic state.

“DD will be sorely missed. Hamba kahle, Mshengu, Ludvonga lwaMavuso.

• Mashatile is deputy president of the ANC and SA