WATCH | 'We were blessed as a nation to have a man of this calibre': Soweto mourns Desmond Tutu

Members of religious groups and the public gathered at the home of Archbishop Emeritus Desmond Tutu in Soweto on Wednesday to pay their respects after the SA icon of peace passed away on December 26 at the age of 90. 

Some arrived carrying flowers, others scribbled condolence messages in a book placed in front of the home. 

Former Anglican priest Peter Linkwe said he would remember Tutu for the anti-apartheid marches they joined in Soweto.. 

“He was a profound theologian, a compassionate person who expressed solidarity with anyone in dire straights.”

Johannesburg mayor Dr Mpho Phalatse delivered a speech honouring Tutu as a man the nation was blessed to have.

“This is the only street in the world where you had two Nobel prize winners [Tutu and former president Nelson Mandela], both receiving an award for peace, and it can only mean that God was serious about peace in this land that he had to raise not one but two ministers of peace in our midst.” 

Tribute events will continue across the country throughout the week, culminating in a category 1 state funeral in Cape Town on Saturday.

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