Zamani Saul (born 7 March 1972) is a

South Africa South Africa, officially the Republic of South Africa (RSA), is the Southern Africa, southernmost country in Africa. Its Provinces of South Africa, nine provinces are bounded to the south by of coastline that stretches along the Atlantic O ...

n politician who is the 5th and current Premier of the Northern Cape and a Member of the Northern Cape Provincial Legislature. He has also been serving as the Provincial Chairperson of the

African National Congress The African National Congress (ANC) is a political party in South Africa. It originated as a liberation movement known for its opposition to apartheid and has governed the country since 1994, when the 1994 South African general election, fir ...

(ANC) since his election on 12 May 2017. He previously served as the Provincial Secretary and as the Deputy Provincial Secretary of the party.

Life and education

Zamani Saul completed his Grade 12 at Umso High School in Colesberg. He obtained a master's degree in Development Studies from the

University of the Free State The University of the Free State (; Sotho language, Sesotho: ''Yunivesithi ya Freistata'') is a multi-campus public university in Bloemfontein, the capital of the Free State (province), Free State and the judicial capital of South Africa. It wa ...

and a Master of Laws degree from the

University of the Western Cape The University of the Western Cape (UWC; ) is a Public university, public research university in Bellville, South Africa, Bellville, near Cape Town, South Africa. The university was established in 1959 by the Politics of South Africa, South ...

. He, later on, also achieved a Doctorate of Laws degree in Public Law and Jurisprudence from the same university. Saul is currently studying towards a Doctorate of Philosophy in Multi-Disciplinary Studies through the

University of South Africa The University of South Africa (UNISA) is the largest university system in South Africa by enrollment. It attracts a third of all higher education students in South Africa. Through various colleges and affiliates, UNISA has over 400,000 student ...

. He is married to Tapsy Saul, and they have children together. Their one son matriculated in 2018.

Political career

Saul served as the municipal manager of the Pixley ka Seme District Municipality from 2000 to 2008. He served as ANC Deputy Provincial Secretary from 2004 until his election as Provincial Secretary in 2008. He won re-election to a second term in 2012. On 12 May 2017, Saul was elected unopposed as the Provincial Chairperson of the African National Congress in the Northern Cape after Premier Sylvia Lucas had withdrawn her nomination for the position. Saul succeeded John Block, who had resigned from the position in October 2015. Deshi Ngxanga succeeded Saul as Provincial Secretary. Saul is seen as someone who is aligned with the Ramaphosa faction of the

, as he endorsed

Cyril Ramaphosa Matamela Cyril Ramaphosa (born 17 November 1952) is a South African businessman and politician serving as the 5th and current President of South Africa since 2018. A former Anti-Apartheid Movement, anti-apartheid activist and trade union leade ...

to become ANC President in 2017. On 8 May 2019, the ANC retained their majority in the Northern Cape Provincial Legislature. Saul was selected as the party's premier candidate on 13 May 2019. He assumed the office on 22 May 2019. In his first few months, he pledged to cut what he called "wastage" from the Northern Cape government; he declared that it was unacceptable and wasteful spending that as Premier he would be offered a bowl of fresh fruit every morning in his office and that his official car of Premier would be replaced after 120,000 km while ambulances in the province would run 952,000+km before replacement. Accordingly he banned Northern Cape ministers from getting new cars and used the money to buy 63 new ambulances instead.

References

External links

People's Assembly profileZamani Saul, Dr – South African GovernmentProfile: Dr Zamani Saul – Northern Cape GovernmentProfile: Dr Zamani Saul – NCPLEGDr Zamani Saul: The Northern Cape's new 'activist premier'
, - {{DEFAULTSORT:Saul, Zamani Living people University of the Western Cape alumni University of the Free State alumni Premiers of the Northern Cape African National Congress politicians 21st-century South African politicians University of South Africa alumni Members of the Northern Cape Provincial Legislature 1972 births