Mapisa-Nqakula wishes Mboweni well as ex-minster resigns from Parliament

Former finance minister Tito Mboweni has decided to call it quits as a Member of Parliament (MP) with immediate effect.

Parliament spokesperson Moloto Mothapo confirmed Mboweni’s resignation – effective from Monday, 31 January – on Twitter.

“This is to confirm that former Minister of Finance, Mr Tito Mboweni, has handed his resignation as MP in the National Assembly to Speaker Nosiviwe Mapisa-Nqakula.

“The resignation is effective from today, 31 January 2022. Speaker wishes the former minister well on his retirement,” Mothapo said in a tweet.

Mboweni resigned from his position as finance minister ahead of President Cyril Ramaphosa’s much anticipated cabinet reshuffle in August last year.

At the time, Ramaphosa confirmed that he had also agreed to Mboweni’s request to be “released”, replacing the former South African Reserve Bank (SARB) governor with current Finance Minister Enoch Godongwana.

“I wish him well in his endeavours and I am sure he will continue to excel and be available for certain tasks to serve our people,” said Ramaphosa.

Rumours of Mboweni resigning first circulated in August 2020, however, he refuted those claims in a tweet.

The following year in February, Ramaphosa also dismissed speculation Mboweni had plans on resigning.

Mboweni continued his work as an MP, which include being a member of the Portfolio Committee on Water and Sanitation, following his resignation.

Career

According to the government website, Mboweni was also Minister of Labour from May 1994 to July 1998.

Prior to his appointment as Minister of Labour, Mboweni was the deputy head of ANC’s economic policy department.

He was the eighth governor of the from 1999 to 2009, having initially joined the central bank in July 1998 as an adviser to the governor at the time.

The former minister obtained a Bachelor of Arts degree in Economics and Political Science from the National University of Lesotho in 1985.

In 1987, he then obtained a Master of Arts degree in Development Economics from the University of East Anglia in England.