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Professor Jakes Gerwel died in the early hours of Wednesday morning at the Kuilsriver Hospital in the Western Cape.
The 66-year-old professor was born in Somerset East and was reported to be in a critical condition after undergoing heart surgery.
Gerwel was a well-known figure in South Africa's political history.
In his later years, he chaired and was on the board of major organisations and corporations.
His early life's work was mostly as an academic in roles which included educational adviser to the SA Students' Organisation, as chancellor of Rhodes University, and later as rector of the University of the Western Cape.
He was also served as chairman of Media24 and Life Healthcare, and was the chairman of the board of trustees of the Nelson Mandela Centre of Memory and former director general in the office of former president Nelson Mandela.
