South Africa's minister of communications, Stella Ndabeni-Abrahams | Image: Twitter /@Stellarated
In a move that he hailed an appropriate mix of experience, capability, gender, and generational representation, President Cyril Ramaphosa announced a mini cabinet reshuffle to fill the gaps recently left by Malusi Gigaba following his resignation and Edna Molewa following her untimely passing.
The department of home affairs will now be headed by Siyabonga Cwele who has moved from the ministry of telecommunications and postal services and as previously reported, minister of communications Nomvula Mokonyane will be filling the late Edna Molewa’s shoes in the department of environmental affairs.
Stella Ndabeni-Abrahams will take over from Cwele as both the minister of telecommunications and postal services and the minister of communications as the departments merge under her leadership.
According to Ramaphosa, the departments will remain separate departments until the 5th administration.
According to the National Assembly’s website, Thembisile Stella Ndabeni-Abrahams has been an African National Congress (ANC) member of parliament since 2009.
The 39-year-old Mthatha native was recently promoted by Ramaphosa after serving as deputy minister of telecommunications and postal services and deputy minister of communications.
Her many qualifications include a certificate in telecommunications, policy, and regulation management from Wits; an advanced certificate in project management from Rhodes University; and a diploma in telecommunications and management systems, to name a few.
Ndabeni-Abrahams once served as the provincial secretary of the Eastern Cape youth economic council, a member of the ANC Youth League national executive committee, and a member of the North West committee from 2008 to 2010.
Following her stint in the North West committee, she segued into a career in parliament where she became a committee member for portfolios such as communications, defence, the joint parliamentary committee on defence and intelligence, and the ANC parliamentary caucus sub-committee on political education.
Ndabeni-Abrahams married Thato Abrahams in 2012 and the pair managed to live under the radar until a recent cheating scandal rocked their marriage and thrust them into the spotlight.
Sunday World reports that Abrahams allegedly had an affair with ANCYL national executive committee member Sizophila Mkhize.
Upon discovering the affair, Ndabeni-Abrahams allegedly posted pictures of Mkhize on her on her Facebook page along with funny captions and comments, reports the publication.
The humiliation allegedly drove Mkhize to feel suicidal.
All three parties denied the rumours when confronted by the publication.
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