APDUSA remembers comrade Tommy, who passed away on 9 January 2025, as a dedicated member of the organisation before his withdrawal from APDUSA more than two decades ago. Tommy participated in APDUSA activities from the early 1980s onwards. Back then, APDUSA members (imprisoned on terrorism charges in 1971/2) and released from Robben Island, introduced Tommy to the organisation. At a conference to reconstitute APDUSA in 1990, convened in Manenberg in Cape Town, Tommy was elected national secretary.
Tommy and other APDUSA comrades were detained in the 1980s after visiting the Unity Movement of South Africa (UMSA) leadership in Zambia and Zimbabwe. These visits were aimed at linking the home front with the exiled leadership.
After Tommy relocated to Johannesburg in the late-1980s, he never hesitated to host APDUSA members whenever they undertook trips into and out of the country. Amongst these members were stalwarts of the movement like Norman Traub and Leonard Nikani.
Residing in Johannesburg, he was instrumental in reactivating a group of Society of Young Africa (SOYA) and APDUSA members who had been active in that region in the early-1960s. Tommy propagated the politics of APDUSA in SOWETO and represented the organisation in structures such as the Johannesburg Tenants Association (JOTA), Soweto Electricity Crisis Committee, Khanya College and Alexandra Committee. He offered his home as a venue for CEC meetings whenever our Gauteng branch hosted these meetings.
When the ANC under the disguise of the National Sports Congress (NSC) launched their attack on the South African Council of Sports (SACOS), Tommy and other APDUSAns joined in the defence of SACOS. He was especially involved in the Eastern Cape and Gauteng area.
Even though Tommy became politically inactive in APDUSA from 1999 onwards, he attended functions of the organisation and maintained informal links with his former comrades. APDUSA gives recognition to his commitment and dedication to the struggle fought on many fronts.
Go well, comrade Tommy.