Finance Minister Enoch Godongwana has been sworn in as an ANC MP, paving the way for President Cyril Ramaphosa to appoint the minister of electricity.
Godongwana and Trade and Industry Minister Ebrahim Patel were appointed into Cabinet outside the benches of Parliament.
The Constitution allows the president a maximum of two people who can be appointed into Cabinet if they are not serving MPs.
House chairperson Madala Ntombela announced on Tuesday, in the sitting of the National Assembly, that Godongwana had been sworn in as a parliamentarian.
He takes over the seat left vacant by another ANC MP from the Eastern Cape.
Sihle Zikalala had taken over the seat left vacant by a member from the KwaZulu-Natal list.
Paul Mashatile had taken the seat left vacant by a Gauteng member.
Ramaphosa has been expected to make his Cabinet reshuffle for several weeks.
In his State of the Nation Address, he announced that he would appoint a minister of electricity.
On Tuesday, Godongwana was sworn in, in Speaker Nosiviwe Mapisa-Nqakula’s office, to allow Ramaphosa to appoint the minister of electricity who is expected to come from outside the ranks of Parliament.
Godongwana became finance minister after Tito Mboweni left last year. At the time, Godongwana had not been a member of the National Assembly.
He was the chairperson of the ANC economic transformation committee.
Ramaphosa roped him in to lead the National Treasury.
The new minister of electricity is expected to be announced when Ramaphosa names the new members of his executive.
This was expected after he finished consulting the ANC’s alliance partners, the SACP and Cosatu, at the weekend.
siyabonga.mkhwanazi@inl.co.za
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