No midnight cabinet reshuffle as Ramaphosa sticks to process

President Cyril Ramaphosa’’s closest advisers are urging him to reshuffle his cabinet before he delivers the State of the Nation address on 9 February, to signal his control of the state — and the governing party.

While some of his allies, including new ANC secretary general Fikile Mbalula, have been agitating for an early reshuffle, the president will probably only do so once party and government processes have been completed, which is likely to take until early February.

Ramaphosa needs to fill the vacancies created by Mbalula’s move full time to the ANC headquarters in Luthuli House and the departure of the public service and administration minister, Ayanda Dlodlo, to the World Bank last April.

Seven sitting cabinet members — among them Public Enterprises Minister Pravin Gordhan and Sports, Arts and Culture Minister Nathi Mthethwa — failed to make it to the ANC’s national executive committee (NEC) at the party’s national conference last month and are likely to make way for ministers drawn from the new leadership.