Malusi Gigaba

Knowledge Malusi Nkanyezi Gigaba MP (born 30 August 1971 in Eshowe, KwaZulu-Natal) is the Minister of Home Affairs since 25 May 2014, previously serving as Minister of Public Enterprises in the government of South Africa. First elected to the National Assembly of South Africa in 1999 as part of the African National Congress, he resigned in 2001 but was re-elected in 2004.

Early life

Gigaba is the second born to Reverend Jabulani Gigaba and Nomthandazo Gigaba. He has three sisters and a brother. Gigaba did his primary school education at Mathonsi Primary School in Mandeni around 1983. He then proceeded to do his high school by education at Vryheid State High School in 1988.

Early Political Career

During this period Gigaba became involved in various student and youth organisations such as Congress of South African Students (COSAS), the South African Youth Congress (SAYCO), the South African Student Congress (SASCO) and Young Christian Students (YCS). Some of these organisations such as COSAS and SASCO were aligned to the banned African National Congress (ANC). It was his involvement in these organisations that laid the foundation for his activities in the ANC Youth League. Gigaba has also been active in youth organizations, and was elected president of the ANC Youth League three times in a row (1996, 1998, 2001). He is currently the longest serving ANC Youth League president.

When the ANC, Pan Africanist Congress (PAC), South African Communist Party (SACP) and other liberation movements were unbanned in 1990, he joined the African National Congress Youth League, SACP and the ANC. That same year he completed his Bachelor of Pedagogics at UDW, and went on to register for a master's degree in social policy.^[1] Gigaba became one of the founding members of the Education Students Society at the University of Durban-Westville in 1992. The following year (1993) he was elected as chairman of SASCO at the University Durban-Westville (UDW).

Later Political Career

In 2004 he was re-elected to Parliament where he became Deputy Minister of Home Affairs until October 2010. He was involved in a new visa system allowing easier legal flow of migration between South Africa and Zimbabwe. This and positive changes made in the department have won him praise from human rights organization PASSOP and from Adbell Musati, whose Zimbabwean twin brother starved outside of the South African home affairs offices. On 1 November 2010, he became the Minister of Public Enterprises of the Republic of South Africa. In 2011, Gigaba lashed out at the ANCYL leadership, labelling them as "anarchists" when they called for the nationalisation of the country’s resources. Since his appointment as Minister of Public Enterprises, he has become a leading figure in the South African government. He is responsible for the a significant aspect of the government's massive infrastructure investment programme through the State Owned Companies that are led by him such as Transnet and Eskom.^[2] On 25 May 2014, President Jacob Zuma appointed Gigaba as Minister of Home Affairs.

Education

He earned a bachelor's degree in education from the University of Durban-Westville (now part of the University of KwaZulu-Natal) in 1991, and a master's degree in social policy in 1994.

Gigaba has been touted for election to be one of the top six national office bearers of South Africa's ruling African National Congress (ANC), at its 53rd National Conference in December 2012. Some of the ANC branches have raised his name for the position of the Deputy President, National Chairperson and Deputy Secretary General.^[3]

External links

• Official site at the South African Ministry of Home Affairs
• Zimbabwean starves outside home affairs
• Sowetan deputy minister meets brother of deceased
• Official site at the Parliament of South Africa

References