Nomusa Dube-Ncube announced as the KZN Premier nominee at Pixley Ka Isaka Seme House on August 08, 2022 in Durban, South Africa. This comes after the the resignation of the Premier Sihle Zikalala following his defeat at the ANC KwaZulu-Natal elective conference. (Photo by Gallo Images/Darren Stewart) 
The ANC Women’s League KwaZulu-Natal says Nomusa Dube-Ncube’s nomination and appointment as provincial premier is a watershed moment that will see her shattering the glass ceiling for women in KZN and beyond.
The KwaMashu-born politician’s rise to the premiership was triggered by the resignation of Sihle Zikalala, who failed to win enough votes in his bid to be re-elected ANC chair in KwaZulu- Natal, or to be elected as a member of the Provincial Executive Committee (PEC). This saw the emergence of Siboniso Duma as provincial leader.
/file/dailymaverick/wp-content/uploads/2022/08/Queenin-Nomusa-Dube-Ncube3.jpg "Illustrative image//Sihle Zikalala, KZN premier resigns at a media briefing at Public Works, Mayville on August 05, 2022, in Durban. (Photo by Gallo Images/Darren Stewart)|Nomusa Dube-Ncube was announced as the KZN Premier nominee at Pixley Ka Isaka Seme House on August 08, 2022, in Durban. (Photo by Gallo Images/Darren Stewart)")
The KwaZulu-Natal ANC PEC nominated three candidates who were interviewed to replace Zikalala – Nomusa Dube-Ncube and members of the provincial legislature Amanda Bani and Mbali Frazer.
Read more on Daily Maverick: ANC KZN: Jubilant ‘Taliban faction’ takes control of the troubled province after a stormy weekend
In a statement issued by ANC Women’s League coordinator Fikile Maseko, said “We could not have asked for a better gift to celebrate Women’s Month in our province. This is, indeed, a huge milestone which has proven that the struggle for women’s empowerment is a societal one, and that we cannot be free until there is gender equality in our province and our country.
“As the ANC Women’s League (task team) in KwaZulu-Natal, we wish to express our gratitude to the African National Congress in our province for selecting comrade Nomusa Dube-Ncube as the premier nominee for our movement.
“This is, indeed, a bold decision that has taken the struggle to free women from the yolk of patriarchy to the next level. Our movement has proven once again that it is not only a leader of society, but that the struggle to achieve a non-sexist society in which every woman can be judged not only in terms of their gender, but in terms of the content of their character, can be realised in our lifetime,” the task team said in a statement.
Nomusa Dube Ncube has been confirmed as the Premier elect of KwaZulu-Natal #ANCKZN
Mtolo says their leadership collective is against the stereotype that woman are not taken seriously in the ANC. He lists her experience in government.— Zimasa Matiwane (@ZimasaMatiwane) August 8, 2022
Shortly after the announcement, Dube-Ncube joined the leadership at a press briefing held in Durban.
“I do accept the deployment by the ANC and also wish to thank the trust that the ANC is giving to me to be able to lead a collective in government,” she said.
“I am indeed going to be working with the ANC leadership, as well as all my colleagues in government, to ensure that we deal with the crippling issues that we are still facing in our province… those of socio-economic challenges and issues of unemployment,” she said.
/file/dailymaverick/wp-content/uploads/2022/08/Queenin-Nomusa-Dube-Ncube1.jpg "Nomusa Dube-Ncube was announced as the KZN Premier nominee at Pixley Ka Isaka Seme House on August 08, 2022, in Durban, South Africa. This comes after the resignation of Premier Sihle Zikalala following his defeat at the ANC KwaZulu-Natal elective conference. (Photo by Gallo Images/Darren Stewart)")
The Women’s League is confident about Ncube-Dube’s capabilities as a leader as she has served in various portfolios in provincial government. She was mayor of the North Central Local Council before the position was amalgamated to form the eThekwini Metro. Dube-Ncube was once deployed by the ANC to serve as ambassador to the Czech Republic and she holds a Master’s Degree in Public Administration from the University of KwaZulu-Natal.
“But, what also makes us happy, is that she is fit for purpose in terms of the leadership pedigree owing to a string of academic qualifications she has attained in her glittering career as a trailblazer.
“The ANC Women’s League (task team) also said that the nomination of comrade Nomusa Dube-Ncube would serve as an inspiration to all women in the province, that it is possible to rise to the highest echelons of leadership,” the statement read.
KZN premier candidate Nomusa Dube-Ncube has welcomed her nomination by the provincial ANC. This will make her the province's first female premier. She says her focus is to tackle unemployment and other socio-economic issues facing the province. #DStv403 #eNCA pic.twitter.com/DF3CN5XQ4o
— eNCA (@eNCA) August 8, 2022
Ncube-Dube’s appointment comes off the back of an unsuccessful leadership campaign at the ANC provincial conference. While she had campaigned relentlessly, it was not enough to garner the support of the party’s branches.
Nicknamed “gamechanger”, she was not aligned to either the Taliban or Ankole factions of the provincial ANC during her election campaign, instead opting to fly solo. Her campaigners believed she was the perfect candidate to unify the party in KwaZulu-Natal.
Ncube-Dube ended up accepting a nomination from the floor for the position of provincial chairperson, but could not muster the 25% of votes that would have allowed her name to be added to the ballot sheet.
However, she appeared second on the additional members list, which ensured she would still be a part of KwaZulu-Natal’s PEC. DM