MMC Tlangi Mogale Honors 100-Year-Old Koko Helen in Hammanskraal on Freedom Day

Tshwane MMC for Roads and Transport and ANC Greater Tshwane Deputy Chairperson Cllr Tlangi Mogale, joins Ward 73 community members and leaders to celebrate Koko Helen “Mmatoropo” Mantshadi’s 100th birthday in Hammanskraal on Freedom Day. Wrapped in ANC colours, Koko Helen stands before a cake as the community sings in her honour.

By Mpho Dube, Editor-in-Chief

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HAMMANSKRAAL— MMC for Roads and Transport and ANC Greater Tshwane Deputy Chairperson Cllr Tlangi Mogale joined Ward 73 Councillor Gunga Michael “Bragunga” Ndlovu and community members in Hammanskraal on Freedom Day to celebrate Koko Helen “Mmatoropo” Mantshadi’s 100th birthday.

The celebration brought Ward 73 together in a marquee filled with family, neighbours, and provincial ANC leaders. Koko Helen, who has lived through a century of South Africa’s history, was honoured for her wisdom and contribution to the community.

Addressing the gathering, Mogale said public service must be rooted in love for the people. “Through it all, our daily responsibilities and what God has blessed us with — whether as community leaders, teachers at school, nurses at the clinic, public servants at Home Affairs, or officials at a municipal customer care facility — everything that we do and say flows from our hearts and should be informed by love,” she said.

Mogale thanked Cllr Ndlovu for organising the event and acknowledged provincial leaders present, including Deputy Coordinator Cde Nomantu and Fundraiser Cde Tasneem. “You cannot lead people if you don’t love them,” Mogale added.

Known for her Bastrata approach to service delivery, Mogale left the celebration and continued road inspections with the Roads and Transport team in Hammanskraal.

The MMC has been driving the Thiba Pothole campaign across Tshwane, focusing on taxi routes, school roads, and corridors to clinics.

The Freedom Day programme highlighted Mogale’s view that leadership extends beyond infrastructure. “She does not only fix roads and manage transport routes. She shows up. She listens. She honors the elders who paved the way so that this generation can drive on it,” said a Ward 73 resident.

Koko Helen’s centenary celebration comes as Tshwane marks 32 years of democracy. For Mogale, the day was a reminder that service is about community as much as it is about tar and traffic lights.

Koko Helen “Mmatoropo” Mantshadi, 100, smiles during her centenary celebration in Hammanskraal on Freedom Day. Dressed in ANC regalia, she marks a century of wisdom and service as leaders and community members gather to honour her life and legacy.

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MMC for Roads and Transport and ANC Greater Tshwane Deputy Chairperson Cllr Tlangi Mogale addresses the community during Koko Helen “Mmatoropo” Mantshadi’s 100th birthday celebration in Hammanskraal, Freedom Day: “We don’t force the community to vote for the ANC. Our work, our commitment, and our delivery must make people fall in love with the ANC again. As leaders, we must practice what we symbolise. We must be good leaders, so that the community sees it, feels it, and chooses us because we serve them right.”