Officials at the Kouga Municipality in the Eastern Cape are in shock following the passing of executive mayor, Elza van Lingen.
In a brief notice on Thursday, the Municipality said that 68-year-old Van Lingen "passed away peacefully at home this morning surrounded by family and loved ones".
A memorial service will be held for her on Monday, 23 April, at 2 p.m at Mentors Country Estate.
The former Democratic Alliance Member of Parliament took over the reigns of the Kouga Municipality following victory in the 2016 local government election.
According to a profile on the DA's website, Van Lingen was approached to join the DA team in 2002 "which saw her ultimately elected as a DA councillor to the, then, Cacadu District Municipality (Sarah Baartman District Municipality). She served as a district councillor for about six years before being asked to serve on the National Council of Provinces (NCOP) during the 2009 Elections."
"In November 2011 she was elected as the Leader of the DA in the NCOP and re-elected again in 2014".
DA Eastern Cape leader, Nqaba Bhanga, said she was a great human being.
"She fought cancer, which was a very difficult time in her life, but she was able to do things that impacted on the hearts of many people in that Municipality. She was a fighter," Bhanga said.
He said one of her last meetings that they held was to discuss her successor which he said: "was the most painful thing to witness as a young person, the courage in her to confront this reality in the manner in which she has done".
Kouga Speaker Horatio Hendricks was elected Acting Mayor earlier this week while Hattingh Bornman was elected Acting Speaker.
