Four ANC members will be sworn in as MPs to pave way for Ramaphosa's new-look Cabinet

ANC secretary-general Fikile Mbalula briefs the media at Luthuli House in Johannesburg on 31 January 2023 on the outcomes of the party's lekgotla. (Photo: ANC DIP)

By Queenin Masuabi

3 Feb 2023

President Cyril Ramaphosa is expected to conclude the makeup of his new cabinet over the weekend which will see a number of senior ANC members no longer being a part of the national executive.

Parliament spokesperson Moloto Mothapo has confirmed to Daily Maverick that *four ANC members will be sworn in as MPs on Monday.

ANC deputy president Paul Mashatile, KwaZulu-Natal Cooperative Governance MEC Sihle Zikalala and former Gauteng Economic Development MEC Parks Tau are the three candidates who have been confirmed by their respective provinces.

“We have adjusted the list and the people who are from Gauteng are Mashatile and Parks Tau,” ANC Gauteng secretary Thembinkosi Nciza told Daily Maverick.

This will place them one step closer to being deployed into the national executive.

The names of ANC second secretary-general Maropene Ramokgopa and former Gauteng Premier David Makhura have also been rumoured to be appointed into cabinet, meaning they would also have to be sworn in.

The announcement on key portfolios is set to be made soon.

Mashatile will replace David Mabuza as deputy president of the country, while there is no clear indication of which departments Zikalala and Tau will be deployed to.

[JUST-IN] KZN MEC of COGTA Sihle Zikalala will be resigning as member of KZN Executive and MPL to go to Parliament. Speculation is also high that Zikalala will be deployed in the Executive Nationally.#sabcnews pic.twitter.com/u0nXpQrwwe

— #LordOfTheMedia (@samkelemaseko) January 30, 2023

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So far, ANC MPs Tshilidzi Bethuel Munyai, Mervyn Dirks have tendered their resignations to Parliament allowing those who are expected to be sworn in these seats.

Who could be facing the Axe?

Tourism Minister Lindiwe Sisulu and Cooperative Governance Minister Nkosazana Dlamini Zuma, both of whom are speculated to be dropped from President Cyril Ramaphosa’s cabinet.

Sisulu might lose her position because of the turbulent relationship she has had with the president. She has been at the forefront of calls for the president to resign because of the Phala Phala farm scandal which made headlines for much of 2022.

Dlamini Zuma blatantly defied the party line when she voted with opposition parties for the adoption of the Phala Phala report in Parliament. Sisulu was on the other hand absent when it was her turn to vote on the matter.

Read in Daily Maverick: “David Mabuza a Cabinet Lekgotla no-show as his deputy president tenure reaches its twilight”

The adoption of the report would have placed Ramaphosa in a position where he could have faced impeachment. However, opposition parties did not manage to garner the required support for the adoption.

Mbalula ANC lekgotla ANC secretary-general Fikile Mbalula briefs the media at Luthuli House in Johannesburg on 31 January 2023 on the outcomes of the party's lekgotla. (Photo: ANC DIP)

ANC secretary general Fikile Mbalula will no longer be the Transport Minister as his new position at Luthuli House is a full-time position.

The ministerial post in the Department of Public Service and administration has been vacant since the departure of Ayanda Dlodlo in 2022 who is now working for the World Bank.

Prominent ministers who did not make the ANC National Executive Committee (NEC) list include Minister of International Relations and Cooperation Naledi Pandor; Minister of Sport, Arts and Culture Nathi Mthethwa and Maite Nkoana-Mashabane who is the Minister of Women, Children and People with Disabilities.

National Assembly Speaker, Nosiviwe Mapisa-Nqakula has also not been elected into the party’s highest decision-making body between conferences which places her at risk of being booted out.

Some insiders believe that Public Enterprises Minister Pravin Gordhan is unlikely to face the chop despite not being elected to the ANC’s NEC.

The president is expected to finalise the names of those who will be reshuffled throughout the weekend.

The cabinet concludes its Lekgotla on Friday evening where they have been taking stock of the work done by the executive and making plans for the year ahead.

Top on their agenda is finding solutions to the dire energy crisis, curbing unemployment and improving the country’s ailing economy. DM

This article was updated at 6.50pm after parliament said that four ANC members - not five as it originally confirmed - were due to be sworn in.

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Who could be facing the Axe?