Senzeni Zokwana | |
---|---|
Minister of Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries | |
In office 26 May 2014 –29 May 2019 | |
President | Jacob Zuma Cyril Ramaphosa |
Preceded by | Tina Joemat-Pettersson |
Succeeded by | Position Abolished |
Personal details | |
Nationality | South African |
Political party | African National Congress South African Communist Party |
Website | https://www.daff.gov.za |
Senzeni Zokwana is a South African politician. He is a former Member of Parliament and served until May 2019 as the Minister of Agriculture,Forestry and Fisheries,having been appointed by President Jacob Zuma in May 2014. He previously served as the President of the National Union of Mineworkers (NUM).
He became involved in trade union activism in 1980 during the apartheid-era in South Africa at the President Steyn gold mine in the Free State. He joined the ranks of NUM in 1983,became a shaft steward in 1984 and was elected to the branch executive committee in the President Steyn Mine in 1985. He subsequently moved up the ranks to become branch chairperson in 1987,vice regional chairperson in 1992 and regional chairperson from 1993 to 1994. He was first a shift overseer on safety matters and in 1995,he joined the NUM staff as a safety officer,after proving himself a dedicated advocate of modern mine safety techniques. Mr Zokwana was elected as vice president in 1994,a position he held until 2000 when he was elected president. He was subsequently re-elected for the role and held the position until 2014.
In 2005 Zokwana was elected as President of the International Federation of Chemical,Energy,Mine and General Workers' Unions in 2005 and was subsequently re-elected in November 2011. Additionally,he was elected as Vice-President of the global union federation IndustriALL Global Union on June 19,2012. [1]
On the 16th of August 2012,34 miners were gunned down by the South African Police Service after they had embarked on a months lengthy strike demanding wage increase. At the center of this tragedy were the National Police Commissioner Riah Phiyega,Minister of Police Hon. Nathi Mthethwa,the Deputy president and Lonmin director Cyril Ramaphosa,NUM President Mr Senzeni Zokwana,the President of AMCU Mr. Joseph Mathunjwa,Lonmin Manager Mr. Mokoena and General Mpembe. [2] [3]
The National Union of Mineworkers (NUM) is a trade union for coal miners in Great Britain,formed in 1945 from the Miners' Federation of Great Britain (MFGB). The NUM took part in three national miners' strikes,in 1972,1974 and 1984–85. After the 1984–85 strike,and the subsequent closure of most of Britain's coal mines,it became a much smaller union. It had around 170,000 members when Arthur Scargill became leader in 1981,a figure which had fallen in 2015 to an active membership of around 100.
Matamela Cyril Ramaphosa is a South African businessman and politician who,since 2018,has served as the fifth democratically elected president of South Africa,as well as president of the African National Congress (ANC) since 2017. Previously an anti-apartheid activist,trade union leader and businessman,Ramaphosa served as secretary general to ANC president Nelson Mandela,deputy president to President Jacob Zuma,and chairman of the National Planning Commission from 2014 to 2018.
The South African Police Service (SAPS) is the national police force of the Republic of South Africa. Its 1,154 police stations in South Africa are divided according to the provincial borders,and a Provincial Commissioner is appointed in each province. The nine Provincial Commissioners report directly to the National Commissioner. The head office is in the Wachthuis Building in Pretoria.
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The National Union of Mineworkers (NUM) is a trade union in South Africa. With a membership of 300,000 it is the largest affiliate of the Congress of South African Trade Unions.
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The Workers and Socialist Party (WASP) is a Marxist and Trotskyist political party in South Africa affiliated to International Socialist Alternative.
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