Amongst those paying homage to Phooko’s legacy, are the MEC of Police, Roads and Transport, and ANC provincial chairperson in the Free State, Sam Mashinini, who described the 49-year-old mayor’s death as a shock via Facebook. Speaking on behalf of the ANC in the province, he said they are still coming to grips with the Moqhaka mayor’s death. 

The MEC of Cooperative Governance and Traditional Affairs (Cogta), Thembeni Nxangisa, has in a statement honoured Phooko’s dedication and commitment to building a better life for all South Africans. Former Free State Premier spokesperson, Tiisetso Makhele, recalled a fond memory of his and the Moqhaka Mayor’s 2015 trip to Cuba, Phooko “was impatient with wayward ways, but never lost patience. It is sad and painful to accept this reality for he was full of life, energetic, strong, and agile,” says Makhele.

Moqhaka spokesperson, Dika Kheswa, informed OFM News that Phooko was ill for a very short period prior to his death, so brief, that he died en route to a Pax Clinic located in his native town of Viljoenskroon, as his condition deteriorated.

Details regarding Phooko’s burial are yet to be confirmed, with family reportedly also still reeling from the shock. Kheswa requests the public to give Phooko’s family time to grieve and make the necessary funeral arrangements, which will be announced in due course. A full autopsy is over the next few day being performed on the body of the deceased Mayor.

The Moqhaka spokesperson further announces that the Member of the Mayoral Committee responsible for Finance, Rachere Moletsane, will act as mayor after Phooko’s death. According to Kheswa, it was Phooko himself who appointed Moletsane, to act on his behalf as Moqhaka Mayor, shortly before he died.

Furthermore, Kheswa says due processes with regards to council need to be followed, this includes convening a council meeting and officially pronouncing Phooko’s death there. Phooko occupied the position of Council Whip of Moqhaka in 2016, then took over the Executive mayor role of the Free State municipality from the now MEC of Public Works and Human Settlements in the province, Tshidi Koloi, in 2019.

OFM News