Dina Pule

Pule was born on 19 July 1960 in a village on the outskirts of Hazyview in the former the Eastern Transvaal (now Mpumalanga province). She attended Elijah Mango College of Education in Nelspruit from 1987 to 1989, where she trained as a secondary school teacher; while there, she served on the student representative council (first as secretary and then as deputy president) and as a founding member of the anti-apartheid South African National Students Congress. In addition to her teaching diploma, Pule subsequently received a Bachelor of Arts degree in communications from the University of South Africa. In 1990 and 1991, while working as a teacher, Pule was a founding member of the Eastern Transvaal Women's Union and the secretary of a local branch of the South African Democratic Teachers' Union (SADTU). From 1991 to 1993, she was Provincial Treasurer of the Mpumalanga branch of SADTU. At the same time, Pule became active in structures of the African National Congress (ANC), which was unbanned by the apartheid government in 1990: from 1990 to 1991, she was the Provincial Secretary of the ANC Women's League in Mpumalanga and a regional leader of the ANC Youth League in the region. She joined the post-apartheid government as a public servant in 1996, when she was appointed community liaison officer at the health department in the provincial government of Mpumalanga. The following year, she was elected secretary of her local ANC branch in Nelspruit. She held that position until 1999, when she was elected chairperson of the local branch of the ANC Women's League in Nelspruit. In 2001, Pule ascended a rung in the ANC hierarchy when she was elected deputy secretary of the ANC's entire Ehlanzeni region; she held that position until 2004. == Provincial government: 2004–2009 ==

In the 2004 general election, Pule was elected as a Member of the Mpumalanga Provincial Legislature. – she was moved to the Agriculture and Land Administration portfolio in a reshuffle by Makwetla. In a subsequent reshuffle in May 2008, she succeeded Jabu Mahlangu as MEC for Culture, Sport and Recreation. In that capacity, she chaired the Mpumalanga government's political task team ahead of the 2010 Soccer World Cup. Towards the end of her term as Deputy Provincial Secretary, at the ANC's 52nd National Conference in December 2007, Pule was elected to a five-year term on the ANC National Executive Committee. She was also elected to the party's National Working Committee. == National government: 2009–2013 ==

Deputy Minister: 2009–2011 In the 2009 general election, Pule was elected as a Member of the National Assembly, the lower house of South Africa's national Parliament. Minister of Communications: 2011–2013 On 24 October 2011, Zuma appointed Pule to succeed Roy Padayachie as Minister of Communications in his cabinet. According to News24, Pule was the first post-apartheid cabinet minister from Mpumalanga. More significantly, Pule was subject to public controversy surrounding allegations that she had abused her public office . On 9 July 2013, The so-called Gupta Leaks, published in 2017 after Pule had left government, appeared to suggest that Pule, while still a Minister, had met the controversial Gupta family at their home in Saxonwold in October 2012. ==Misconduct finding: 2013==

The misconduct allegations against Pule stemmed from her romantic relationship with Phosane Mngqibisa, a businessman who was alleged to have received improper benefits as a result of his relationship with Pule. In response, Pule initiated a public spat with the Sunday Times, which had reported the initial allegations against her, according to her as part of a political conspiracy. She denied continuously that she had a relationship with Mngqibisa or that his trips abroad had been subsidised by the government. the parliamentary committee recommended that Pule should be subject to the harshest sanctions permitted by the parliamentary rules: a public reprimand in the National Assembly, a fine equivalent to 30 days' salary, and 15 days' suspension from the assembly. Madonsela's report, released in 2013, found that Pule's conduct had been unlawful; Madonsela added that it was "grossly improper and unethical that she tried to pass the buck to her staff". She recommended that Pule should apologise to Parliament, to the Department of Communications, and to the Sunday Times, and that the department should be reimbursed fully for the money spent on Mngqibisa's travel. == Later offices ==

After being subject to dismissal and punishment, Pule completed her term as an ordinary member of the National Assembly. in the 2014 general election, she was again included on the ANC's party list. However, the party's elective conference was delayed due to the COVID-19 pandemic; when it was finally held in 2022, Pule did not contest a top position. In August 2021, Pule was appointed to a four-year term as deputy chairperson of the Mpumalanga Economic Growth Agency, a public entity. The following month, the Mpumalanga ANC appointed her as one of three members of an internal panel that was tasked with resolving disputes about the selection of ANC candidates for the 2021 local government elections. By that time, Pule was also a full-time staff member of the ANC in Mpumalanga. At the ANC's 55th National Conference in December 2022, she was additionally elected to a five-year term on the ANC National Executive Committee. She was ranked 67th of the 80 candidates elected to the committee by the number of votes received. The ANC Women's League held its 13th National Conference in July 2023, and Pule was nominated from the floor of the conference to stand for election as the league's Deputy Secretary-General. She was elected to the office on 23 July, deputising Nokuthula Nqaba. Return to Parliament: 2024–present Amid the ANC experiencing a decline in electoral support in the May 2024 general election, Pule was elected to return to an ANC seat in the National Assembly. == References ==