South Africa Government Plans to Stabilize Protest-Hit Province

(Bloomberg) -- South Africa’s national government said it will intervene to stabilize the North West province, which has been rocked by days of violent protests aimed at removing Premier Supra Mahumapelo from his post.

The National Treasury and health department will take full responsibility for the North West health department, Communications Minister Nomvula Mokonyane said at a briefing in Cape Town on Thursday following a cabinet meeting. The ministers of cooperative governance, justice and health will visit the province to assess the situation to decide on a course of action, she said.

“This is being done with immediate effect,” she said. “The inter-ministerial task team will engage the provincial government but it has no brief to remove the premier,” she said.

Mahumapelo opposed President Cyril Ramaphosa’s successful bid to win control of the ruling African National Congress at a party congress in December.

Disgruntlement with Mahumapelo’s leadership has been mounting over his handling of a graft scandal, his sidelining of his ANC rivals in the North West and a lack of government services in the region.

To contact the reporters on this story: Paul Vecchiatto in Cape Town at pvecchiatto@bloomberg.net, Mike Cohen in Cape Town at mcohen21@bloomberg.net.

To contact the editors responsible for this story: Karl Maier at kmaier2@bloomberg.net, Gordon Bell

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