Shela Paulina "Polly" Boshielo is a South African politician who has been the Limpopo MEC for Transport, Safety and Liaison since June 2022. She has been a Member of the

Limpopo Provincial Legislature The Limpopo Provincial Legislature is the primary legislative body of the South African province of Limpopo. It is unicameral in its composition, and elects the premier and the provincial cabinet, the Limpopo Executive Council, from among the ...

for the

African National Congress The African National Congress (ANC) is a Social democracy, social-democratic political party in Republic of South Africa, South Africa. A liberation movement known for its opposition to apartheid, it has governed the country since 1994, when ...

since June 2015. She served as the speaker of the provincial legislature from October 2015 to May 2019 and as the MEC for Education from May 2019 to June 2022. Boshielo also served as a

Member of the National Assembly In politics, a national assembly is either a unicameral legislature, the lower house of a bicameral legislature, or both houses of a bicameral legislature together. In the English language it generally means "an assembly composed of the rep ...

from May 2014 to June 2015.

Early life

Boshielo was born and grew up in

Seshego Seshego is a township in the Polokwane Local Municipality of the Capricorn District Municipality of the Limpopo province of the Republic of South Africa. The township lies directly northwest of the city of Polokwane. History Between 1972 and 197 ...

, a township of Polokwane.

Political career

Boshielo joined both the

and

South African Communist Party The South African Communist Party (SACP) is a communist party in South Africa. It was founded in 1921 as the Communist Party of South Africa (CPSA), tactically dissolved itself in 1950 in the face of being declared illegal by the governing Na ...

. After the 2014 general election held on 7 May, Boshielo was nominated to the

National Assembly In politics, a national assembly is either a unicameral legislature, the lower house of a bicameral legislature, or both houses of a bicameral legislature together. In the English language it generally means "an assembly composed of the repre ...

. She was sworn in as an MP on 21 May 2014. In June 2014, she received her committee assignments. She was a member of the auditor-general, transport, and public enterprises committees. Boshielo resigned from Parliament on 5 June 2015. Also in June, she was sworn in as a Member of the

. She was elected speaker of the legislature on 13 October, succeeding

Mirriam Ramadwa Matodzi Mirriam Ramadwa is a South African politician. A member of the African National Congress, she was elected to the Limpopo Provincial Legislature in 2009. In 2013, she was appointed as the Member of the Executive Council (MEC) for Sports, Ar ...

, who had initially refused to resign. Boshielo was formally sworn in on 15 October. After the 2019 provincial election that was held on 8 May,

Mavhungu Lerule-Ramakhanya Mavhungu Maureen Lerule-Ramakhanya is a South African politician. A member of the African National Congress, Lerule-Ramakhanya is a former mayor of the Vhembe District Municipality. She was elected as a Member of the Limpopo Provincial Legislatur ...

was elected speaker of the provincial legislature on 22 May 2019. On that same day, premier

Stanley Mathabatha Chupu Stanley Mathabatha (born 21 January 1957) is a South African politician who is currently the Premier of Limpopo. He was elected to the position in July 2013 after the resignation of Cassel Mathale. He was previously a public servant in L ...

appointed Boshielo Member of the Executive Council for Education. She was sworn in later that same day. The provincial SADTU welcomed her appointment. During her tenure as Education MEC, Limpopo was the worst-performing province in the country in the 2021 matric results. Boshielo was unfazed by this, responding to criticism by blaming the COVID-19 pandemic. On 29 June 2022, Mathabatha conducted a cabinet reshuffle, in which he announced that Boshielo and the MEC for Transport, Safety and Liaison,

would exchange positions.

Personal life

Boshielo is married to Benny.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Boshielo, Polly Living people Year of birth missing (living people) African National Congress politicians South African Communist Party politicians 21st-century South African women politicians 21st-century South African politicians Members of the National Assembly of South Africa Women members of provincial legislatures of South Africa Members of the Limpopo Provincial Legislature