People in their hundreds converged at the Ramabulana family of Shayandima last Friday, to pay their last respects to a man described by all as a fearless revolutionary.

The green, black and gold colours of the ruling party were the order of the day when hundreds of party supporters and their comrades in the tripartite alliance came to bid farewell to one of them.

Elvis Ramabulana (31) died in an accident last week and he was laid to rest at Luvhalani in Nzhelele on Friday afternoon.

High-profile personalities like SABC Limpopo Regional Manager Mr Victor Ravhuanzwo and Member of Parliament and former Louis Trichardt municipal manager Ms Faith Muthambi attended the funeral.

Speakers during his funeral spoke fondly of the good work that he had done to improve his community. He was described as being a fearless cadre who led from the front and never retreated, even when things were bad.

Family spokesperson Mr Simon Ramabulana said they had lost a man who was a breadwinner in the family. He said Elvis Ramabulana was still a boy, but he proved himself a leader; even during family meetings he would come up with solutions when they had problems. “We never knew of the role he played in the community, but today we could see by the multitudes who have come to support us. It is hard to accept his death, but through your support we are able to cope and we are sure we will pull through,” he said.

A long-time friend of his, former student leader and political activist Rudzani Ludere said all youths should learn from Elvis. He described him as somebody who did not hide his feelings and was brave enough to voice his feelings anywhere. He said Ramabulana did not work for material things but was dedicated to improving the lives of the poor masses in his community.

One of his comrades, Ernest Mulaudzi, who is also a local ward councillor, described Ramabulana as a tribune of the people, a giant amongst giants and a fearless warrior. “Elvis served his people and organization with stars, laughter, humanness, kindness, selflessness and will always be remembered by many as an inspirer and someone who encouraged us to work hard for our communities,” he said.

Ramabulana was born at Luvhalani village in the Nzhelele area in 1979. He is the youngest child the late Mr Elias Ntuseni and Mrs Mashau Ramabulana. He was drawn to the struggle at an early age and his commitment to the struggle of improving his community led him to establishing student structures like Cosas. He was elected president of the SRC at his school.

He also served as deputy-chairperson of Zone 10 of Sanco in Shayandima, being the youngest member to serve. He also served as a member of Shayandima Youth Development and was elected a member of the Thulamela Youth Council in 2004. He served in the branch executive committee of the ANCYL from 2000 until 2006.

He was head of the youth desk of Sanco in Shayandima at the time of his untimely death.

He is survived by his wife Nkhangweleni, a son Ntuseni, his mother, brother and three sisters.