[1] Zamuxolo Joseph Peter was born on 10 January 1965 in Riebeeck East, north of Grahamstown.
He had to leave school after his father, a farm labourer, died.
He attended Border Technikon and studied at the Beit Berl College in Israel.
Within the African National Congress, he served as a regional chairperson and a member of the provincial executive committee.
[2] On 11 July 2020, Peter was admitted to a hospital after testing positive for COVID-19 during the COVID-19 pandemic in South Africa.