Former transport minister Dipuo Peters has confirmed to Business Day that she has resigned as an MP less than a week after she was moved from her department.
The former minister, whose illustrious run of service in legislatures and Parliament runs almost as far back as SA’s democracy, told BDlive that she made the decision to quit following persistent health concerns.
"Yes, I have resigned as an MP. I submitted a letter of resignation to the president the chief whip and the national ANC. I had to inform them. I gave the ANC leadership the reasons to withdraw from Parliament," said Peters.
She said she was already making arrangement to travel to Cuba for a medical procedure that she declined to elaborate on. She said once back to good health, she would be available to work wherever the ANC deployed her.
"In the recent period my health has not been good. I have been in hospital. I went to a doctor who told me to rest. I think that this is the way to do it so that I can go and have an opportunity for four to six months and after that I will be ready for deployment anywhere," she said.
She had congratulatory words for Joe Maswanganyi, the MP chosen by President Jacob Zuma to replace her as transport minister. She also praised Zuma’s decisive adjustments to Cabinet aimed at incorporating "a younger crop of leaders" into government.
"I know him and we know each other. We are from the same structure. There has been a call for a generational mix and he was a generation behind me in the Youth League structures. We will support the next generation, including Malusi [Gigaba, the new finance minister]," she said.
She said she left the office of minister of transport with no regrets. She encouraged Maswanganyi to maintain the foundation that she and past ministers had built.
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