1. Sindisiwe Lydia Chikunga was born on 9 November 1958 and is a South African politician who is serving as the Minister in the Presidency for Women, Youth and Persons with Disabilities since 2024.
16 Facts About Sindisiwe Chikunga
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Sindisiwe Chikunga's father was Lutheran church pastor Rev Lucas Gcaba.
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Sindisiwe Chikunga holds a Bachelor of Arts and an Honours degree in Curationis from the University of South Africa as well as a Master of Arts in Curationis from the University of Pretoria.
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Sindisiwe Chikunga became a member of the DCO Makiwane Youth League in the 1980s.
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Sindisiwe Chikunga has held leadership positions in the African National Congress in Mpumalanga; she was an ex officio member of the ANC's Gert Sibande Regional Executive Committee and served as chairperson and as deputy chairperson of the region.
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Sindisiwe Chikunga was an ex officio member of the Regional Executive Committee of the African National Congress Women's League.
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Sindisiwe Chikunga is a former member of the ANC Provincial Executive Committee in Mpumalanga.
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Sindisiwe Chikunga became a Member of Parliament for the ANC in 2004.
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From 2009 to 2012, Sindisiwe Chikunga was chairperson of the Portfolio Committee on Police during which she frequently clashed with National Police Commissioner Bheki Cele.
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On 12 June 2012, Sindisiwe Chikunga was appointed as Deputy Minister of Transport by president Jacob Zuma during his cabinet reshuffle.
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Sindisiwe Chikunga remained as Deputy Minister of Transport after Zuma announced a major overhaul of his cabinet after being sworn in for a second term as president in May 2014.
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In March 2018, it was reported that Sindisiwe Chikunga was allegedly refusing to return two of her old official cars, a BMW X6 and a BMW GT, even after the Transport Department bought her two new official cars, a BMW X5 and a Jaguar F-Type.
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Sindisiwe Chikunga was accused of allowing a family member to fill up her petrol tank with the Avis petrol card of the state-hired car she was given.
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Sindisiwe Chikunga was reappointed as Deputy Minister of Transport in a cabinet reshuffle in August 2021.
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On 24 March 2023, Sindisiwe Chikunga denied claims by the Economic Freedom Fighters, an opposition party, that she sabotaged their National Shutdown protest on 20 March by instructing bus companies to cancel their services and not transport EFF supporters wanting to attend the protest.
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On 6 November 2023, Sindisiwe Chikunga was robbed at gunpoint by three masked individuals after her vehicle stopped along the N3 highway outside Johannesburg to change a tyre that hit a deliberately planted spike.