Finance Minister, Trevor A Manuel, MP, together with SA Statistics Council Chair, Howard Gabriels and Statistician-General Pali Lehohla, would like to extend their condolences to the family, friends and colleagues of Professor Lionel Slammert. Professor Slammert passed away on 28 August 2008 after a long battle with cancer.
Professor Slammert was appointed to the SA Statistics Council in April 2005 and served as chair of the Economic Statistics Committee of the Council. He made valuable contributions to StatsSA, particularly during the re-engineering of such major series as the CPI and the Labour Force Survey. Professor Slammert was also a respected academic, with his interest and expertise lying in the field of mathematics. He displayed a lifelong commitment to education, serving as a lecturer and professor at more than one tertiary institution, and as a dean at the Cape Technikon. At the time of his death, Professor Slammert served as Deputy Vice-Chancellor at the Durban University of Technology.
The contribution he made to statistics in South Africa is greatly appreciated, and the dedication displayed throughout his service on the SA Statistics Council will be missed.