Mathole Motshekga

Motshekga was born on 2 April 1949 in Modjadjiskloof in what later became South Africa's Limpopo province. His father was a ranger on a white-owned farm, and he had younger siblings. He matriculated in 1969 and, after graduation, worked as a clerk at the University of the North. == Provincial political career ==

ANC Provincial Chairperson: 1997–2000 At the time of South Africa's first post-apartheid election in 1994, Motshekga was Deputy Provincial Chairperson of the ANC branch in the country's new Gauteng province. He held that position until September 1997, when ANC Provincial Chairperson Tokyo Sexwale resigned and Motshekga was elected to succeed him. His election followed a heated succession battle with multiple rounds of voting: Motshekga defeated Amos Masondo and then, in the final round of voting, beat Frank Chikane with 343 votes to Chikane's 179. Premier of Gauteng: 1998–1999 Motshekga likewise succeeded Sexwale as Premier of Gauteng in January 1998 when Sexwale vacated that post. During his tenure, he was subject to an internal investigation by the ANC. President Thabo Mbeki asked him to resign as Premier in April 1999, shortly after Mbeki took office in a general election. Motshekga's ousting from the government office led to division inside the provincial ANC, and the Motshekga-led ANC Provincial Executive Committee was disbanded by the national party leadership in 2000, prematurely ending Motshekga's term as ANC Provincial Chairperson. In subsequent years, Motshekga expanded his business interests. He was also elected to return to the Gauteng Provincial Legislature as an ordinary member in the 2004 general election. == National political career ==

At the ANC's 52nd National Conference in December 2007, Motshekga was elected to a five-year term on the ANC National Executive Committee (NEC), the party's top executive organ; by number of votes received, he ranked 53rd of the 80 candidates elected. ANC Chief Whip: 2009–2013 In the 2009 general election, Motshekga was elected as a Member of the National Assembly (NA), the lower house of the South African Parliament; at the same time, he was appointed Chief Whip of the ANC, the majority party, in the NA. He served in that position until June 2013, becoming the party's longest-serving Chief Whip. failed to gain re-election to the ANC NEC. The NEC said this situation was incongruent with a party resolution adopted in 2008 which required the Chief Whip to sit on the NEC. The ANC therefore removed Motshekga as Chief Whip on 20 June 2013, replacing him with Stone Sizani. Legislator: 2013–2024 At a later date, after his removal as Chief Whip, Motshekga was in any case co-opted onto the ANC NEC. At the party's 54th National Conference in December 2017, he was democratically elected to another five-year term on the body, although he was not nominated to stand for re-election at the 55th National Conference in December 2022. Simultaneously, Motshekga remained an ordinary Member of Parliament, He served on a number of parliamentary committees, including as Chairperson of the Portfolio Committee on Justice and Correctional Services (from June 2014 to August 2018) and Chairperson of the Joint Standing Committee on the Financial Management of Parliament (from August 2018 to May 2019). He publicly criticised President Jacob Zuma towards the end of Zuma's presidential term, and he was subsequently viewed as a supporter of Zuma's successor, President Cyril Ramaphosa. He did not stand for re-election to his parliamentary seat in the 2024 general election. == Balobedu royal family ==

By the time of the inauguration of Makobo Modjadji VI as Rain Queen in 2003, Motshekga was an adviser to the royal family of Limpopo's Balobedu people. After Makobo Modjadji died in 2005, Motshekga raised her only daughter, Princess Masalanabo, who at the time of the queen's death was still an infant. This led to a custody battle and ultimately to a rift with the royal family. In 2019, the family accused Motshekga of attempting to turn the princess against them and "hijack" the throne. In 2022, Motshekga took the family to court in a bid to challenge the coronation of Masalanabo's brother, Prince Lukukela, as Balobedu monarch; he claimed that Masalanabo was the rightful heir to the throne. ==Personal life==

Motshekga believes in a religion which he calls Karaism and describes as an indigenous African religion. ==References==