The announcement of the new Cabinet by President Jacob Zuma saw the return to power of five former premiers, whose political future was uncertain. Former North West premier Edna Molewa is the new Minister of Social Development, Sibusiso Ndebele was the premier of KwaZulu-Natal and now heads the transport ministry, former Northern Cape premier Dipuo Peters is the Minister of Energy — a new department created by the splitting of the Department of Minerals and Energy Affairs.
Thabang Makwetla, the former Mpumalanga premier and a known supporter of former president Thabo Mbeki, is the new Deputy Minister of Defence and Military Veterans.
Paul Mashatile, the former premier of Gauteng who was last week left out of the provincial cabinet, even though he was number one on the province’s list, has been appointed Deputy Minister of Arts and Culture. His expected appointment as the premier of Gauteng was dealt a blow when the ANC’s national executive committee opted for his deputy in the party’s provincial leadership, Nomvula Mokonyane.
Mashatile was not on the national list of the ruling party and was not sworn in as a Member of Parliament last week. The president is allowed to appoint two Cabinet ministers who are not MPs and Mashatile falls in that category. Leader of the opposition Freedom Front Plus, Dr Pieter Mulder, is the new Deputy Minister of Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries. He is the only opposition party leader in Cabinet.
Peters was axed from the Northern Cape’s national executive committee nomination list for the Polokwane conference in 2007 and the ANC also left her out of its provincial candidate list this year. She did however make it to number 44 on the party’s national candidates list.
Zuma seems to have forgiven Makwetla for backing Mbeki for the third term as the ANC presidency. There were also suspicions that he would defect to the Congress of the People.
Molewa’s future in politics looked uncertain from last year when the new ANC leadership in the province voiced unhappiness about her lack of consultation on governance matters. She was also being blamed for not providing leadership on who to back between Zuma and Mbeki in Polokwane. Her career has been resuscitated by the ANC Women’s League, which gave her the responsibility of heading the league’s 60-day non-stop election campaign.
Director of research at Unisa, Professor Tinyiko Maluleke, believes that the appointment of the premiers could be due to their loyalty to Luthuli House.
‘They listened at the time that Luthuli House did not have confidence in premiers in several provinces. In Gauteng, Shilowa walked out on them. In Limpopo Moloto played with the ANC and in the Western Cape it was just chaotic,†said Maluleke.
Some of the five former premiers still remained ‘grey†said Maluleke. ‘There is an attempt to throw an olive branch to people who supported Mbeki, the desire to end the Mbeki versus Zuma conundrum that has affected the ANC so much.â€
Molewa and Makwetla were two strong politicians whom the ANC could not leave out, according to Maluleke. ‘Edna Molewa really stuck it out in a manner that has earned her respect from her enemies,†he said.
‘Thabang Makwetla has in Mpumalanga become a major personality that they cannot just get rid of.â€
There were a few surprises when Zuma announced his Cabinet on Sunday afternoon. Barbara Hogan, widely expected to remain in the Health Ministry, has been appointed Minister of Public Enterprises.
The Health Ministry was given to former Limpopo minister for education, Dr Aaron Motsoaledi.
Former ANC Youth League president, Fikile Mbalula, was rumoured to be destined for bigger things such as the full ministry post, but the man behind the ANC’s winning election campaign has been appointed the deputy minister of police. Maite Nkoana-Mashabane, former Limpopo minister for local government and housing, is now the Minister of International Relations and Cooperation, previously known as the Department of Foreign Affairs.
To criticism that Nkoana-Mashabane had no record in foreign affairs other than serving as South African ambassador to India, Zuma said: ”The ANC knows the strength of this particular cadre and her experience in foreign affairs. She worked with foreign affairs even when she was not an ambassador.â€
Zuma said his new team was ‘efficient and caring†and would be accessible and responsive to the needs of the people.