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This is how Ramaphosa said goodbye to his deputy president, who has indicated and communicated his intention to resign as the country’s deputy president to make way for ANC deputy president Paul Mashatile.
Then Ramaphosa said, “I wish to extend my appreciation to deputy president David Dabede Mabuza who has given me his unwavering support over the last five years.”
Ramaphosa was responding to parliamentarians who debated his state of the nation address earlier this week. In his closing remarks, Ramaphosa chose to honour Mabuza “for what he had done for the country.”
“Not only has he given me support as the president, he has been working side by side with me these past five years and has executed the tasks that I allocated to him.
“Tasks such as heading the South African National AIDS Council and the extensive engagements with military veterans and traditional leaders.
“The job and tasks that he has had in engaging with traditional leaders throughout the country on critical issues such as communal land and also, their ability to execute their work as an important structure in the state.”
He told a joint session of the National Assembly and the National Council of Provinces that Mabuza has helped to build peace in South Sudan and has led processes related to land reform, among other things.
“Deputy President Mabuza has indicated his wish to step down from his position, I have informed him, that I am attending to and considering it and I would like to thank him for the work that he has done for this nation and for all of us,” he said.
President Cyril Ramaphosa also thanked all of his ministers, their deputies, premiers, government employees, and his protectors, implying that he will soon reshuffle his cabinet.
According to several reports, the ANC and the government are growing frustrated with Ramaphosa’s dithering over a cabinet reshuffle.
After the swearing-in of new ANC MPs, including Mashatile, Ramaphosa was expected to reshuffle his cabinet. But he is said to have decided to postpone the much-anticipated cabinet reshuffle.
Mabuza told mourners at a funeral service in Mpumalanga that Ramaphosa would announce his resignation to the country soon. He stated that he and Ramaphosa had agreed that he would step down to allow Mashatile to take over.
Speaking to other officials Ramaphosa said, “I also wish to extend my thanks to all ministers and deputy ministers that I am privileged to work with.
“I thank them for the outstanding work that they do in the service of our country. I also wish to thank the premiers of our country all nine premiers, from the Western Cape right through to Limpopo.”
“At the very least, almost two to three times a year, we hold our presidential coordinating council (PCC) meeting and we exchange views on a number of issues, and I have always found our premiers to be very creative, energetic and full of ideas such as to write letters to me to say, ‘President please declare a state of disaster,” he said.
He also added that “I would also like to extend my gratitude to the director generals and deputy director generals who are the real engine of our government. I would like to thank them together with a number of other officials in our government from the cleaners, gardeners and all the way to the top.”