President Cyril Ramaphosa’s message to South Africa: People guilty of unlawful and unethical conduct welcome in his cabinet

President Cyril Ramaphosa appointed controversial former Communications Minister Dina Pule as South Africa’s new Minister of Social Development.

On Tuesday, 30 June 2026, Ramaphosa announced changes to his cabinet following consultation with the leadership of the Democratic Alliance.

These changes mostly affected Democratic Alliance ministers, including Willie Aucamp replacing John Steenhuisen as the Minister of Agriculture.

None of this was a surprise. However, there was one surprise which, despite rumours of it happening, still surprised many people.

In the vacant Ministry of Social Development, Ramaphosa appointed Dina Pule as the Minister of Social Development.

The surprise stems from the fact that Pule was a disgraced former Communications Minister found guilty of unlawful and unethical conduct.

Her ministerial tenure from 2011 to 2013 under President Jacob Zuma was marred by allegations of corruption, nepotism, and conflicts of interest.

Pule was accused of misusing state power to benefit her romantic partner, businessman Phosane Mngqibisa.

She allegedly coerced event organisers and pressured major telecommunications companies into questionable actions.

These actions related to the Information and Communications Technology (ICT) Indaba in Cape Town in June 2012.

She allegedly pressured them to funnel millions in sponsorship money to a company called Khemano, owned by Mngqibisa.

Despite repeatedly denying to the public and Parliament that there was a romantic relationship with Mngqibisa, this was debunked.

Pule had officially registered him as her travel companion in the Department of Communications’ human resources database in 2009.

He accompanied her on multiple official overseas trips, with the state footing the bill for his travel and luxury accommodations under spousal benefits.

A leaked internal whistle-blower dossier accused Pule and Mngqibisa of setting up a web of influence to control state-owned enterprises reporting to her department.

She was accused of pushing friends and relatives of Mngqibisa onto the boards of the SABC, the South African Post Office, Sentech, and USAASA.

The allegations culminated in a landmark investigation by former Public Protector Thuli Madonsela and Parliament’s Ethics Committee.

In April 2013, Marian Shinn, the DA’s former Shadow Minister of Communications, laid criminal charges against Pule.

She asked the SA Police Service to investigate alleged corruption in appointments made at the Department of Communications and its entities.

Adverse findings against Dina Pule

Madonsela found that Pule had persistently lied to Parliament, the public, and her own department regarding her relationship with Mngqibisa.

The Public Protector found that Pule’s conduct as Communications Minister was unlawful, improper, unethical, and constituted maladministration.

Parliament’s Joint Committee on Ethics and Members’ Interests found Pule guilty of violating the Executive Members’ Ethics Code.

She was handed the maximum penalties, including a formal reprimand in the National Assembly and a fine equivalent to 15 days’ salary.

The former Communications Minister also lost her parliamentary privileges for 15 days and was forced to issue a public apology to the National Assembly.

In July 2013, amid the mounting evidence and public pressure, President Jacob Zuma axed Pule from his cabinet during a reshuffle.

Ramaphosa’s decision to appoint Pule as a Minister sends a message to South Africans that such conduct is acceptable for a cabinet member.

The President had many other options, but he selected Pule, whose previous tenure as Minister was tainted by one scandal after another.

This makes a mockery of Ramaphosa’s promise to build an ethical state and root out corruption.

This is an opinion piece by the Newsday editorial team.