Premier (South Africa)

In South Africa, a Premier

is the head of government of one of South Africa's nine provinces. The Premier of a province plays for that province a role similar to that played by the President for the country as a whole.

Election

Elections for the nine provincial legislatures are held every five years, simultaneously with the election of the National Assembly; the last such election occurred on 7 May 2014. At the first meeting of the provincial legislature after an election, the members choose the Premier from amongst themselves. The legislature can force the Premier to resign by a motion of no confidence. If the Premiership becomes vacant (for whatever reason) the legislature must choose a new Premier to serve out the period until the next election. One person cannot have serve more than two five-year terms as Premier; however, when a Premier is chosen to fill a vacancy the time until the next election does not count as a term.[1]

Role

In terms of the Constitution, the executive authority of a province is vested in the Premier. The Premier appoints an Executive Council made up of five to ten members of the provincial legislature; they are known as Members of the Executive Council (MECs). The MECs are effectively ministers and the Executive Council a cabinet at the provincial level. The Premier has the power to hire and fire MECs at his/her own discretion.

The Premier and the Executive Council are responsible for implementing provincial legislation, along with any national legislation assigned to the provinces. They set provincial policy and manage the departments of the provincial government; their actions are subject to the national constitution and the provincial constitution (if there is one).

In order for an act of the provincial legislature to become law, the Premier must sign it. If he/she believes that the act is unconstitutional, it can be referred back to the legislature for reconsideration. If the Premier and the legislature cannot agree, the act must be referred to the Constitutional Court for a final decision.

The Premier is also ex officio a member of the National Council of Provinces, the upper house of Parliament, as one of the special delegates from his or her province.

List of current Premiers

Premier Province Order Party Incumbency First mandate began Current mandate began
Phumulo Masualle Eastern Cape 6th ANC 2 years, 200 days (21 May 2014) 2014 Election 2014 Election
Ace Magashule Free State 5th ANC 7 years, 215 days (6 May 2009) 2009 Election 2014 Election
David Makhura Gauteng 6th ANC 2 years, 200 days (21 May 2014) 2014 Election 2014 Election
Willies Mchunu KwaZulu-Natal 7th ANC 197 days (24 May 2016) 2016 Designation 2016 Designation
Stanley Mathabatha Limpopo 4th ANC 3 years, 142 days (18 July 2013) 2013 Designation 2014 Election
David Mabuza Mpumalanga 4th ANC 7 years, 215 days (6 May 2009) 2009 Election 2014 Election
Supra Mahumapelo North West 5th ANC 2 years, 200 days (21 May 2014) 2014 Election 2014 Election
Sylvia Lucas Northern Cape 4th ANC 3 years, 198 days (23 May 2013) 2013 Designation 2014 Election
Helen Zille Western Cape 7th DA 7 years, 215 days (6 May 2009) 2009 Election 2014 Election

Timeline

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See also

References

  1. ↑ Constitution of South Africa

External links

This article is issued from Wikipedia - version of the 10/6/2016. The text is available under the Creative Commons Attribution/Share Alike but additional terms may apply for the media files.