President Cyril Ramaphosa has sparked outrage with two senior government appointments within a week, both involving individuals with controversial pasts linked to scandals.
On 30 June, Ramaphosa appointed Dina Pule as minister of social development, replacing the dismissed Sisisi Tolashe. Just days later, he named Ayanda Dlodlo as South Africa’s new ambassador to France, filling a position vacant since the death of the previous ambassador, Nathi Mthethwa, in September 2025.
The Democratic Alliance has condemned both appointments in the strongest terms, accusing the president of placing ANC cadre interests above those of the country.
Dina Pule: A return from disgrace
Pule’s return to cabinet has raised eyebrows given her dismissal by former president Jacob Zuma in July 2013 following a corruption scandal whilst she served as minister of communications.
The controversy centred on allegations of corruption, nepotism and abuse of office involving her romantic partner, Phosane Mngqibisa. She was accused of improperly influencing the appointment of service providers for the 2012 Information and Communication Technology Indaba in Cape Town, which allegedly allowed Mngqibisa to receive R6 million in sponsorship funds.
Pule was also found to have facilitated improper financial benefits for Mngqibisa, including the department of communications covering his overseas travel and accommodation expenses. Parliamentary investigations revealed she had failed to disclose her relationship with Mngqibisa and lied to the parliamentary ethics committee by denying the relationship.
In August 2013, the ethics committee found Pule guilty of breaching the code of conduct for members of parliament. She was fined 30 days’ salary, received a 15-day suspension of parliamentary privileges and was publicly reprimanded in the national assembly.
DA spokesperson on social development, Nazley Sharif, accused Ramaphosa of prioritising the interests of the ANC Women’s League, where Pule serves as deputy secretary-general, over the wellbeing of South Africans. The DA has demanded an immediate and comprehensive lifestyle audit of Pule.
Ayanda Dlodlo: State capture links raise alarm
The appointment of Dlodlo as ambassador to France has drawn even sharper criticism from the DA, given France’s status as South Africa’s largest source of foreign direct investment, with R20,7 billion pledged by French businesses for 2026 alone.
Ryan Smith MP, DA spokesperson on international relations and cooperation, described Dlodlo as a “State Capture cadre” whose appointment is “a blight on our foreign service” and “a stinging insult to the people of South Africa”.
Dlodlo’s controversial past includes her actions as minister of state security in January 2021, when she attempted to prevent the State Security Agency acting director-general, Loyiso Jafta, from testifying before the Zondo Commission of Inquiry into State Capture. Deputy chief justice Raymond Zondo dismissed her application, noting no evidence was provided to support claims that national security would be threatened.
Jafta’s testimony revealed the existence of a parallel, unlawful intelligence structure within the SSA that operated outside formal legislative processes to advance the political interests of Zuma. This included a private intelligence armed unit reporting directly to the former president.
Dlodlo also faced scrutiny over a bloated R1,7 billion broadband deal in Johannesburg in 2019. As a director of CitiConnect Communications, a black economic empowerment partner in the project, she earned R3 million from the sale of her shares. The project, originally budgeted at R600 million, was investigated by a forensic report that noted mismanagement and deception, though no personal wrongdoing was attributed to Dlodlo.
The DA called for her to be referred to the public protector for alleged breaches of the Executive Members’ Ethics Act.
DA: Foreign service hijacked for ANC corruption
Smith said the appointment of Dlodlo to represent South Africa to such a crucial international partner was unacceptable.
“Such a crucial international partner cannot be managed by an individual as severely compromised as Ayanda Dlodlo – an ANC cadre who lacks the requisite integrity and skill to be trusted with a state budget let alone any form of economic diplomacy and international trade,” he said.
“South Africa’s foreign service cannot be hijacked as a convenient means to sweep ANC corruption under the diplomatic rug. Our country will never be taken seriously when we send our worst people to represent us to some of our best allies.”
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As a member of the government of national unity, the DA reiterated its call for a principled foreign policy that places the interests of the people of the republic above those of the ANC.
The appointment comes just before Ramaphosa’s scheduled three-day official visit to France, where he is expected to hold discussions with French president Emmanuel Macron regarding trade and other bilateral matters.
The ANC Women’s League has defended Pule’s appointment, citing her completion of a corrective process 13 years prior and her leadership experience. However, civil society organisations including Corruption Watch have also expressed significant concern regarding the appointment.
Dlodlo previously spent approximately four years serving as a group executive director at the World Bank, representing Angola, Nigeria and South Africa.
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