Florence Radzilani

Radzilani was born on 21 April 1971 in Ha-Masakona village in the region that is now Limpopo province. She earned a Bachelor's degree from the University of Venda and a diploma in higher education from the University of the North. In later years, she also received an Honours degree in public administration from the University of Limpopo, a diploma in municipal governance from Rand Afrikaans University, and a certificate in executive leadership management from the University of Pretoria. She was a member of the African National Congress (ANC) Youth League. == Political career ==

Radzilani was an ANC councillor in the Makhado Local Municipality in Limpopo from 2000 to 2006, when she was appointed to a management position in the Office of the Limpopo Premier. to 2012. The following year, she was elected to the Provincial Executive Committee (PEC) of the ANC in Limpopo, serving as Deputy Provincial Secretary. Radzilani was sworn in as a Member of the Limpopo Provincial Legislature and as Member of the Executive Council (MEC) for Safety, Security and Liaison in the Limpopo provincial government. However, when Stan Mathabatha took office as Limpopo Premier in July 2013, he reshuffled his executive, firing Radzilani and replacing her with Joyce Mashamba. Radzilani completed her term as ANC Deputy Provincial Secretary in 2014, when she was elected to a four-year term as an ordinary ANC PEC member. VBS scandal Also in 2018, Radzilani was implicated in a major corruption scandal at VBS Mutual Bank when she was named in the report of an investigation commissioned by the South African Reserve Bank. The investigation was conducted by advocate Terry Motau, who said that Radzilani had been at the centre of "one of the most illuminating examples of the rampant corruption and bribery that occurred" at VBS, which was declared insolvent in 2018 after bank executives defrauded depositors. The report reproduced WhatsApp messages in which the former VBS chairperson, Tshifhiwa Matodzi, was informed that Radzilani had been "crying" because she had only received R300,000 in kickbacks. Radzilani denied wrongdoing and said that Motau's report was defamatory. Later the same week, the ANC PEC asked her and other implicated mayors to resign their government positions; Radzilani submitted her resignation letter on 11 December 2018. Return to Limpopo Provincial Legislature: 2019–present In the 2019 general election, Radzilani was re-elected to the Limpopo Provincial Legislature. She was therefore reinstated as ANC Deputy Provincial Chairperson, and in June 2022 she won election to a second four-year term in that position. After her re-election to her ANC office, Stan Mathabatha, as Limpopo Premier, appointed her his MEC for Transport and Community Safety on 6 October 2022. She was sworn in on 11 October. Following the 2024 general election, the newly elected Premier Phophi Ramathuba appointed her as MEC for Social Development. == Personal life ==

Radzilani is married to Stanley Radzilani, who is a pastor. Mathabatha's spokesperson initially denied the veracity of the recording, but both the Sunday World and City Press reported that Mathabatha admitted its veracity in an affidavit as part of an unsuccessful application to interdict media coverage of the recording. == References ==