Seasoned South African actor Jerry Phele became a national sensation after starring as Mofokeng on SABC 1’s popular 90s sitcom Emzini Wezinsizwa. The hilarious role solidified his acting career INSIZWA’as a local icon in the country. So where is he now?
DOWN MEMORY LANE WITH JERRY PHELE AS MOFOKENG ON ‘EMZINI WEZINSIZWA’
Jerry Phele starred alongside actors Vusi Thanda, the late Roland Mqwebu, and slain actor Bafana Mlangeni in the multi-language 90s sitcom. According to TVSA, the hilarious production aired from 1994 to 2003 producing up to nine seasons. The iconic South African sitcom revolved around the antics of five men living in a hostel who had moved to Johannesburg looking for work.
In the sitcom, Phele played the character of an unemployed seSotho-speaking man with a thrill for gaming and a love for women.
Since the end of the sitcom in the early 2000s, Jerry Phele continued his acting career and was cast in several local shows including SABC 1’s edutainment series Khululeka – he joined season two of SABC 2’s Skwizas sitcom, acted in Mzansi Magic’s Samsolo in 2013, and was also cast in Mzansi Magic’s telenovela called The Throne where he starred as Motsamai, a village joker who was more than what meets the eye.
Emzini Wezinsizwa
Find out where ‘Emzini Wezinsizwa’ actor Jerry Phele is now. Image via Twitter @MYavhudiIn 2022, GroundUp reported that the Mamelodi-based hostel that Emzini Wezinsizwa was filmed at had not been maintained well and was falling apart. Apart from that, the City of Tshwane was also no longer supplying it with electricity even though it still occupies residents.
The 67-year-old actor is married to a woman known as Sesinyane and has two sons, Kgaogelo and Ntshepe, as well as a daughter named Lesedi.
According to SowetanLIVE, in his free time, Phele enjoys watching TV, relaxing with friends and family, or visiting his mother in Sebokeng. He also enjoys having a cup of Rooibos tea or relaxing with a 12-year-old scotch.