I look forward to being able to enjoy the routines of a normal life – Jeff Radebe
He says he has found no greater honour to have been trusted by five presidents, including Nelson Mandela.
President Cyril Ramaphosa greats Jeff Radebe on arrival of the funeral. Picture:Sibonelo Ngcobo/African News Agency(ANA)
Jeff Radebe, who has served in government under five presidents, including Nelson Mandela, issued a statement on Thursday in which he said he looks “forward to being able to enjoy the routines of normal life”.
This after Radebe was excluded from President Cyril Ramaphosa’s cabinet announced on Wednesday. Radebe recently served as the minister of energy.
Radebe said he had “found no greater honour” than to have served under five presidents, namely Mandela, Thabo Mbeki, Kgalema Motlhante, Jacob Zuma and Ramaphosa.
“I am proud of the gains I have achieved as a servant leader and the contributions I have made throughout my years in government,” the statement reads.
Radebe said he would consider new options and that he “looks forward to being able to enjoy the routines of a normal life as well as immersing myself into new possibilities”.
Read the full statement below:
Having headed seven ministries (the department of public works; public enterprises; acting health; transport; justice and constitutional development; the presidency for planning, monitoring and evaluation; and energy) for a quarter of a century, it would be an understatement to say that I have found no greater honour to have been trusted by five presidents (presidents Mandela, Mbeki, Motlhante, Zuma and the current President Ramaphosa) since the dawn of democracy to serve my country and the people of South Africa. I am proud of the gains I have achieved as a servant leader and the contributions I have made throughout my years in government. I have crisscrossed the length and breadth of this country and the world, with barely a sphere of government I have not participated in. The highs and lows of political life will hold me in good stead for the road ahead.
Politics and running government have been my life. Twenty-five years in government has meant time away from loved ones and a busy schedule. The day I made a vow to serve the African National Congress was the beginning of a life-long commitment to this country – sacrificially, at times, at the expense of my family. Considering new options marks a new era for me and my family. I look forward to being able to enjoy the routines of a normal life as well as immersing myself into new possibilities. As the saying goes, every next level of our lives will demand a different version of ourselves.
I would like to thank President Cyril Ramaphosa for having trusted me with the energy portfolio. I also thank the people of South Africa who remind the government every day of the price that was paid for this democracy. May they continue to hold us, as public servants to account and to remind us of our duty to serve.
I wish the new cabinet well – it is indeed a new dawn for all us.
Sincerely
Jeff Radebe
(Compiled by Makhosandile Zulu)
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