Bhekinhlahla Jeremia Mnyandu (born 19 November 1955)[1] is a South African academic and politician who represented KwaZulu-Natal in the National Assembly from 2004 to 2009. He was a member of the Democratic Alliance (DA) until September 2005, when he crossed the floor to the African National Congress (ANC).
Bheki Mnyandu | |
|---|---|
| Member of the National Assembly | |
| In office 23 April 2004 – May 2009 | |
| Constituency | KwaZulu-Natal |
| Personal details | |
| Born | Bhekinhlahla Jeremia Mnyandu 19 November 1955 |
| Citizenship | South Africa |
| Political party | African National Congress (since September 2005) |
| Other political affiliations | Democratic Alliance (until September 2005) |
Political career edit
Mnyandu was formerly an academic in KwaZulu-Natal.[2] He joined the National Assembly as a DA representative after the 2004 general election; he was sworn in to the seat, one of the DA's eight in the KwaZulu-Natal caucus, after it was declined by member-elect Visvin Reddy.[3]
Hours before the end of the floor-crossing window of September 2005, Mnyandu announced that he had resigned from the DA in order to join the governing ANC.[4] He was accompanied by three other black DA MPs – Richard Ntuli, Enyinna Nkem-Abonta, and Dan Maluleke – and DA leader Tony Leon later complaint that they had all been "direct beneficiaries of the DA's attempts to increase the diversity of the party's leadership".[2]
In the 2009 general election, Mnyandu stood for re-election under the ANC's banner,[1] but he was ranked too low on the party list to win a seat.
References edit
- ^ a b "2009 National and Provincial Election – Final Candidate Lists" (PDF). Electoral Commission of South Africa. 6 April 2009. Retrieved 27 May 2023.
- ^ a b "DA: Five blacks out, four whites in". The Mail & Guardian. 23 September 2005. Retrieved 12 June 2023.
- ^ "National Assembly Members". Parliamentary Monitoring Group. 15 January 2009. Archived from the original on 14 May 2009. Retrieved 8 April 2023.
- ^ "DA 'surprised' as five MPs jump ship". The Mail & Guardian. 15 September 2005. Retrieved 14 May 2023.