Parliamentary adviser to President Cyril Ramaphosa, Gerhard Koornhof.
- The ANC has co-opted four people into its national executive committee.
- This was done in order to have greater minority representation in the party’s highest non-conference decision-making body.
- The four include Deputy Minister Alvin Botes, President Cyril Ramaphosa’s parliamentary adviser Gerhard Koornhof and former eThekwini mayor Fawzia Peer.
In a bid to have greater minority representation on its national executive committee (NEC), the ANC has co-opted four people into its 87-member top inter-conference decision-making body.
The four are South African National AIDS Council President Steve Mapaseka Letsike, Deputy Minister for International Relations and Cooperation Alvin Botes, President Cyril Ramaphosa’s Parliamentary Counselor Gerhard Koornhof and former eThekwini Mayor Fawzia Peer.
While some celebrated when the ANC achieved gender parity after electing its top seven officials in December, some lamented that the ANC was no longer representative of the country’s demographics, as all seven members were black.
The ANC’s alliance partners also called on the party to co-opt people of minority races to show that it still embraces the ideas of a rainbow nation. The NEC, which can co-opt up to five people, has chosen to appoint four members.
Botes, who missed out on NEC’s 80-member slate, appeared to be one of the biggest gainers by being co-opted into NEC, possibly indicating he could retain his executive seat.
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While serving as the eThekwini mayor in 2019, Peer was rushed to hospital after a suspected case of poisoning. At the time, she complained of a burning sensation in her mouth and throat after drinking bottled water, which she described as smelling like paraffin to her.
Peer was acting mayor after Zandile Gumede was forced to take a 30-day leave following her arrest on corruption charges.
Letsike, affectionately known as “Steve”, is a gender activist who strongly advocates for the rights of members of the LGBTQI+ community.
Koornhof first became an MP in 2004. During the fifth administration, from 2014 to 2019, he served as Parliamentary Councilor when Ramaphosa was Vice President, a position he still holds.
