 Peter Ramoshoane Mokaba was born on 7 January 1959, in Mankweng near Polokwane (then Pietersburg), where he did both his primary and secondary education.His mother is Priscilla Mokaba.In 1982, he was convicted for a number of his underground activities as a member of paramilitary organization Umkhonto we Sizwe and was sentenced to prison on the Robben Island; yet, his sentence was suspended in 1984.