KZN premier Zikalala reshuffles his cabinet, DA wants explanation

KwaZulu-Natal Premier, Sihle Zikalala, has reshuffled the provincial cabinet, appointing former MEC for economic development Nomusa Dube-Ncube as the new MEC for finance and Ravi Pillay, who was at the helm of the finance portfolio, as the MEC for economic development.

Zikalala congratulated Dube-Ncube and Pillay and wished them well in their new responsibilities.

“The two MECs are seasoned leaders who boast a wealth of experience in government. We expect them to hit the ground running and ensure that we accelerate the pace to deliver on the eight key priorities of the sixth administration and improve the lives of the people of our province.

“This reconfiguration will reinvigorate and introduce effective strategies that will position government to focus on accelerating transformation.

“Their contribution will be more critical as we respond to the current economic crisis exacerbated by the Covid-19 pandemic,” Zikalala said.

The DA has called on Zikalala to provide reasons for reshuffling the cabinet.

The leader of the DA in the provincial legislature, Zwakele Mncwango, said his party found the reshuffle surprising and “cannot see any good reason” for it.

“The move raises serious questions around whether the reshuffle is motivated by internal ANC factionalism and whether the premier is in fact under political pressure. If this is not the case, then the premier needs to prove otherwise.

“With the premier having failed to provide reasons for the move, it must also be asked whether he had in fact lost confidence in either of these MECs in their former roles.

“Then there is the fact that reshuffles such as this bring substantial costs, with the ANC’s preference for branding each and every item with the faces of its MECs.

“While the DA acknowledges that cabinet appointments are the prerogative of the premier and that he may not be obligated to provide reasons for the move, we call on him to provide more clarity in the interest of transparency and good governance.

“If our province is to work, then we must work together. This means being candid when to comes to critical decisions that affect our people.”

Compiled  by Makhosandile Zulu

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