Colleagues remember Joe Latakgomo as ‘gentleman par excellence’

His former colleague Phil Molefe, who worked with Latakgomo at The Star in the late 1980s, said Latakgomo was a remarkable human being inside and outside the newsroom and a “gentleman par excellence”. Bra Joe provided leadership to many of us in the newsroom, and he was always willing to guide, to lead, and to encourage us. “He was very courteous, warm, and approachable.

Bra Joe provided leadership to many of us in the newsroom, and he was always willing to guide, to lead, and to encourage us,” Molefe said. “He would always provide guidance and encouragement. Joe was a journalist’s journalist.

He was affable. He was very warm and very pleasant to work with,” he said. “He would never come across to you as your boss.

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He would always invite you, not call you; he would invite you to his office and say, ‘I see you have proposed to do this feature story.’ “‘How do you want to approach it? What are your angles, and why?’ He would invite you to his office and engage you.” Another former colleague, Phil Mtimkulu, said Latakgomo assisted him with how to write a story and how to get interviews from people. “He really looked after me, showing me the ropes.

We got along very well. He was a person who was dedicated to his job,” said Mtimkulu. The Press Council of South Africa, where he served as a public advocate, said it was deeply saddened by Letakgomo’s passing.

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