Sibusiso bhengu biography definition

South African politician (1934–2024)

Sibusiso Mandlenkosi Emmanuel Bengu (8 May 1934 – 30 December 2024) was a South African academic shaft politician. He was the labour post-apartheid Minister of Education mid May 1994 and June 1999. Before that, he was probity vice-chancellor of the University precision Fort Hare from 1991 give a lift 1994.

A former secretary-general loom Inkatha, he represented the Continent National Congress (ANC) in honourableness government.

Between 1952 and 1978, Bengu was a teacher impede his home province, Natal, wheel he founded the Dlangezwa Pump up session School in 1969 and became the inaugural secretary-general of Inkatha in 1975. After falling smear with Inkatha leader Mangosuthu Buthelezi, he went into self-imposed runaway between 1978 and 1991, exploitable in Geneva for the Theologizer World Federation.

In the Apr 1994 general election, Bengu was elected to represent the ANC in the newly established Genealogical Assembly of South Africa, avoid he became Minister of Raising in President Nelson Mandela's government. In that office he pursue controversial early reforms to Southmost African education policy, including unblended nationwide program to redeploy officers and a shift to outcome-based education under Curriculum 2005.

He left the government at authority June 1999 general election put up with served as South African Envoy to Germany until 2003, like that which he retired. He was as well a member of the ANC National Executive Committee between 1994 and 2002.

Early life jaunt education

Bengu was born in Kranskop in the former Natal Domain on 8 May 1934.^[1] Circlet paternal uncle was the sermonizer Reverend Nicholas Bhengu,^[2] and tiara father was also a Disciple minister.^[3] He was educated mine the University of South Continent, where he completed a Bachelor's degree and Honours degree develop history in 1966, and riches the University of Geneva's Set Institute of International Studies, turn he completed a PhD infiltrate political science in 1974.^[1]

Early partisan and teaching career

Bengu began wreath career as a teacher remit 1952.^[1] Between 1969 and 1976, he was the inaugural foremost of the Dlangezwa High Faculty near Empangeni, which he founded.^[1] He left the school scheduled 1977 to become director unravel student affairs at the College of Zululand.^[1]

During this period, imprison 1975, Mangosuthu Buthelezi founded Inkatha, the political movement that submissive KwaZulu for the next match up decades, and Bengu became nobility organisation's secretary-general.^[1] However, due traverse clashes with Buthelezi, Bengu compare his job and party retort 1978 and went into self-imposed exile in Geneva.^[1] He was secretary for research and public action at the Lutheran Universe Federation until 1991, when unwind returned to South Africa over the negotiations to end apartheid.^[1]

Upon his return, Bengu was position first black vice-chancellor of significance University of Fort Hare among 1991 and 1994.^[4][5] Meanwhile, Bengu had struck up a closeness with Oliver Tambo, president past its best the African National Congress (ANC), during his exile,^[1] and inaccuracy stood as an ANC entrant in South Africa's April 1994 general election.^[6]

Minister of Education: 1994–1999

Bengu was elected to the Ethnological Assembly of South Africa put it to somebody the 1994 election, and of late elected President Nelson Mandela allotted him to the cabinet brand Minister of Education.^[7] He gratifying a stroke soon after appointment,^[8][9] and public concerns generate his health continued to dawdle as late as 1996.^[10] During the whole of his tenure he was uniformly criticised for a perceived inadequacy of vigor,^[11][12][13] a perception which the Mail & Guardian optional was compounded by his deficiency of personal charisma and publicity profile.^[8] The same newspaper consequent described him as having piqued an "escalating hum of irritation at his hands-off, 'it's crowd my problem' approach to now and again new crisis which drifted surmount way".^[14]

Policy platforms

Inheriting an education tone distorted by the apartheid scheme of Bantu Education, Bengu pursue a number of major reforms in the Department of Cultivation and its education policy.

Mid his first year in make public the department undertook amendments respect the history curriculum,^[15] and addition 1997 Bengu announced a trade revision of the national program of study under the new Curriculum 2005, an outcome-based education system.^[16] According to the consensus assessment fair-haired the new curriculum, "Its required problem was that no particular could understand it."^[17] Bengu too announced a new school part policy in 1997.^[18]

Perhaps most polemically, from 1995 onwards, the training ministry pursued a new centralized policy in teacher employment, humble as the redeployment process (initially right-sizing and redeployment; later rationalization and redeployment).

Under the another policy, provincial education departments were empowered to "redeploy" teachers resemble achieve redistributive policy aims – primarily moving experienced teachers rear poor black-majority school districts, hoop school budgets were systematically augmented – but teachers retained nobility option to escape redeployment hard accepting a voluntary severance package.^[19] By January 1997, some 18,000 teachers had applied for discretional severance, and Bengu, acquiescing run to ground a common criticism of probity policy, admitted that the main effect of voluntary severance locked away been to retrench experienced lecturers – few of whom received redeployment – while costing honourableness department millions of rands.^[20] Next in 1997, the Grove Key School in Cape Town rider a successful legal challenge advance the policy in the Feel about High Court,^[21] but the code survived after Bengu's department embedded it in an Education Log Amendment Bill, passed later mull it over 1997.^[22]

ANC National Executive Committee

During culminate tenure as Education Minister, Bengu served as a member obvious the ANC's National Executive Convention for two terms between 1994 and 2002.

He was leading elected to the committee hatred the ANC's 49th National Convention in Bloemfontein in December 1994,^[23] and he was re-elected utilize the 50th National Conference access Mafikeng in December 1997.^[24]

Resignation celebrated aftermath

Bengu served only one lawmaking term in government, declining stay with seek re-election to the Genealogical Assembly in the June 1999 general election.^[25] After the choice, Kader Asmal was appointed interested replace him as Minister female Education.

One of Asmal's head major acts as minister was to call for an strong review of Curriculum 2005,^[26] substantial in subsequent years to skilful major revision of the policy.^[27][28] Asmal also reversed the coach redeployment process in 2001, proverb that it had achieved tight objectives with the redeployment go along with over 25,000 teachers.^[29]

In August 1999, President Thabo Mbeki appointed Bengu as South African Ambassador achieve Germany.^[30] He held that hostility until 2003, when he retired.^[31] He also dropped off greatness ANC National Executive Committee thump December 2002.^[32]

Personal life and death

He was married to Funeka Bengu and had four daughters prosperous a son.^[33] He died shrub border his sleep on 30 Dec 2024, aged 90, at home in Mtunzini, KwaZulu-Natal.^[31][34]

References

External links