Pretoria - The ANC in KwaZulu-Natal has welcomed Sihle Zikalala's resignation as the premier of the province.
Zikalala’s resignation follows a bruising defeat at the ANC KwaZulu-Natal’s recent 9th provincial elective conference which saw him concede the provincial chairperson seat to Siboniso Duma.
Zikalala also failed to be elected into the ANC’s provincial executive committee (PEC).
The ANC KZN said Zikalala offered his resignation during an ANC PEC meeting on Thursday.
The party is planning to conduct interviews on Saturday with three female candidates identified to fill in the vacant position.
The next KZN premier will be a woman.
ANC KZN provincial secretary Bheki Mtolo said KZN Finance MEC Nomusa Dube Ncube and ANC MPLs Amanda Bani and Mbali Frazer had been nominated to replace Zikalala.
“The ANC accepted Cde Zikalala’s resignation with pain and difficulty as he was still doing a great job in the province since he took over. We are grateful for the job he has done for the people of this province and we appreciate that he made a conscious decision not to leave office hastily.
“A new premier will be sworn in once interviews are concluded and Cde Zikalala’s resignation confirmed by the provincial legislature,” said Mtolo.
“Cde Zikalala’s tenure has come with a lot of good in the province, including a number of provincial government departments receiving unqualified audit outcomes for the first time.
“We thank Cde Zikalala for his dedication to serve the people of KwaZulu-Natal as he was mandated by the ANC,” said Mtolo.
Zikalala was expected to brief the media at 3pm in Durban on Friday.
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