The African National Congress (ANC) is mourning the death of former energy minister, Tina Joemat-Pettersson.
She died on Monday at the age of 59. Her cause of death has not been revealed.
Joemat-Pettersson, who hailed from the Northern Cape, has had a long history in the party but over the years, has regularly courted controversy for falling foul of her oath of office.
Most recently, Joemat-Pettersson, who at the time of her death was the chairperson of the police portfolio committee, was accused of bribery by the husband of Public Protector Busisiwe Mkhwebane.
During her time as the country’s energy minister, Joemat-Pettersson was implicated in two major scandals.
One was the sale of the country’s oil stocks, a decision later reversed by the Western Cape High Court.
The other, the controversial attempt to acquire nuclear power for South Africa.
Joemat-Pettersson was cleared by Parliament’s ethics committee in March after being implicated by the Zondo commission of inquiry in relation to the nuclear agreements.
“I’ve always maintained that I’m not for sale, and I would never be for sale, I’m not corrupt.”
Until her death, Joemat-Pettersson also maintained her innocence in the oil stock saga, saying the oil never left South African shores, and she was never found guilty of any wrongdoing.