Trevor Manuel
   HOME

TheInfoList



OR:

Trevor Andrew Manuel (born 31 January 1956) is a South African politician who served in the government of South Africa as
Minister of Finance A finance minister is an executive or cabinet position in charge of one or more of government finances, economic policy and financial regulation. A finance minister's portfolio has a large variety of names around the world, such as "treasury", " ...
from 1996 to 2009, during the presidencies of
Nelson Mandela Nelson Rolihlahla Mandela (; ; 18 July 1918 – 5 December 2013) was a South African Internal resistance to apartheid, anti-apartheid activist who served as the President of South Africa, first president of South Africa from 1994 to 1 ...
,
Thabo Mbeki Thabo Mvuyelwa Mbeki KStJ (; born 18 June 1942) is a South African politician who was the second president of South Africa from 14 June 1999 to 24 September 2008, when he resigned at the request of his party, the African National Congress (ANC ...
and
Kgalema Motlanthe Kgalema Petrus Motlanthe (; born 19 July 1949) is a South African politician who was South Africa's third president of South Africa, president between 25 September 2008 and 9 May 2009, following Thabo Mbeki's resignation. Thereafter, he was depu ...
, and subsequently as Minister in the Presidency for the National Planning Commission from 2009 to 2014 under former President
Jacob Zuma Jacob Gedleyihlekisa Zuma (; born 12 April 1942) is a South African politician who served as the fourth president of South Africa from 2009 to 2018. He is also referred to by his initials JZ and clan name Msholozi, and was a former anti-aparth ...
.


Early life

Trevor Manuel was born in Kensington (
Cape Town Cape Town ( af, Kaapstad; , xh, iKapa) is one of South Africa's three capital cities, serving as the seat of the Parliament of South Africa. It is the legislative capital of the country, the oldest city in the country, and the second largest ...
), during the
apartheid Apartheid (, especially South African English: , ; , "aparthood") was a system of institutionalised racial segregation that existed in South Africa and South West Africa (now Namibia) from 1948 to the early 1990s. Apartheid was ...
era and was classified as a
Cape Coloured Cape Coloureds () are a South African ethnic group consisted primarily of persons of mixed race and Khoisan descent. Although Coloureds form a minority group within South Africa, they are the predominant population group in the Western Cape. ...
. His mother, Philma van Söhnen, was a garment factory worker, and his father, Abraham James Manuel, was a draughtsman. According to Manuel's "family legend", his great-grandfather was a Portuguese immigrant; he had married Manuel grew up and was educated in the city. He matriculated from the
Harold Cressy High School Harold Cressy High School is a secondary school in District Six of Cape Town in South Africa. It was founded in January 1951 as the Cape Town Secondary School. The school has played a substantial role in South African history during the aparthe ...
Heritage Impact Assessment
Quahnita Samie and Constance Pansegrouw, 2014 for Harold Cressy Alumni Association, retrieved 15 August 2014.
in 1973 and studied Civil and Structural Engineering, and later, during his detention, law.


Public life

Manuel entered public life in 1981 as the General Secretary of the Cape Areas Housing Action Committee, after which he became a National Executive member of the United Democratic Front (UDF). In September 1985 Manuel was detained and then banned until 31 August 1990. However, Manuel's ban was lifted on 25 March 1986 after it was ruled that it was not in line with the provisions of the Internal Security Act. On 15 August 1986 Manuel was again detained under the emergency regulations for almost two years until July 1988. He was released from detention under severe restrictions but promptly detained again in September 1988, this time until February 1989. His release came with stringent restriction orders.


Post-apartheid

After the unbanning of 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 ...
(ANC), Manuel was appointed as deputy co-ordinator in the
Western Cape Province The Western Cape is a province of South Africa, situated on the south-western coast of the country. It is the fourth largest of the nine provinces with an area of , and the third most populous, with an estimated 7 million inhabitants in 2020 ...
. At the ANC's first regional conference in 1990 Manuel was elected publicity secretary. At the ANC's 1991 national conference Manuel was elected to the
National Executive Committee National Executive Committee is the name of a leadership body in several organizations, mostly political parties: * National Executive Committee of the African National Congress, in South Africa * Australian Labor Party National Executive * Nationa ...
. In 1992 Manuel became head of the ANC's Department of Economic Planning. Manuel was elected as an ANC Member of Parliament in 1994 and was appointed by President
Nelson Mandela Nelson Rolihlahla Mandela (; ; 18 July 1918 – 5 December 2013) was a South African Internal resistance to apartheid, anti-apartheid activist who served as the President of South Africa, first president of South Africa from 1994 to 1 ...
as Minister of Trade and Industry; two years later, in 1996, he was moved to the post of Minister of Finance. The
World Economic Forum The World Economic Forum (WEF) is an international non-governmental and lobbying organisation based in Cologny, canton of Geneva, Switzerland. It was founded on 24 January 1971 by German engineer and economist Klaus Schwab. The foundation, ...
selected Manuel as a "Global Leader for Tomorrow" in 1994, and he has received numerous international awards and recognition for his accomplishments. South Africa reported its first budget surplus in 2007. A combination of increased prosperity, high commodity prices and a wider tax base were credited with the surge of revenue. Manuel increased spending for education, housing and sanitation. In the 2002 election to the ANC's National Executive Committee, Manuel placed first. At the ANC conference in Polokwane in December 2007, he was again elected to the National Executive Committee, this time in 57th place with 1,590 votes. In April 2008 Manuel was announced chancellor of the
Cape Peninsula University of Technology Cape Peninsula University of Technology, a university in Cape Town, South Africa, is the only university of technology in the Western Cape province, and is also the largest university in the province, with over 32,000 students. It was formed by ...
. In September 2008, the
International Monetary Fund The International Monetary Fund (IMF) is a major financial agency of the United Nations, and an international financial institution, headquartered in Washington, D.C., consisting of 190 countries. Its stated mission is "working to foster globa ...
commissioned a "Committee on IMF Governance Reform", to be chaired by Manuel. This report was submitted in March 2009. According to papers seen by ''The Citizen'', Manuel allegedly approved a contract on modernisation at the SA Revenue Service (Sars), worth R100 million, currently standing at R1 billion, without following due processes. In August 2017, HAWK reportedly asked Trevour Manuel and Pravin Gordhan to provide an affidavit on setting up SARS intelligence unit to spy on politicians.


Resignation and re-appointment

On 23 September 2008, Trevor Manuel resigned as Finance Minister along with a number of other cabinet members after the resignation of President
Thabo Mbeki Thabo Mvuyelwa Mbeki KStJ (; born 18 June 1942) is a South African politician who was the second president of South Africa from 14 June 1999 to 24 September 2008, when he resigned at the request of his party, the African National Congress (ANC ...
, unsettling the financial market, but it was subsequently announced that he would be willing to continue to serve under the next president. Manuel explained the resignation as a principled gesture, and he expressed surprise at the market's reaction. He was retained in his post in the cabinet of Mbeki's successor,
Kgalema Motlanthe Kgalema Petrus Motlanthe (; born 19 July 1949) is a South African politician who was South Africa's third president of South Africa, president between 25 September 2008 and 9 May 2009, following Thabo Mbeki's resignation. Thereafter, he was depu ...
, which was announced on 25 September.


Public spat with Jimmy Manyi

On 2 March 2011, Manuel published an open letter to Jimmy Manyi, the spokesperson for the South African government, in which he accused him of racism and compared him to
Hendrik Verwoerd Hendrik Frensch Verwoerd (; 8 September 1901 – 6 September 1966) was a South African politician, a scholar of applied psychology and sociology, and chief editor of ''Die Transvaler'' newspaper. He is commonly regarded as the architect ...
. This letter was precipitated by the remarks that Manyi made about a change in the labour laws he had proposed in his previous position of Director-General of Labour. These changes affect the racial quota that employers in South Africa are to apply to their work force. Previously they needed to reflect the ethnic composition of the ''local'' community; this would now be changed to the composition of the country as a whole. Such a change would have severe consequences for the Coloured community of the
Western Cape The Western Cape is a province of South Africa, situated on the south-western coast of the country. It is the fourth largest of the nine provinces with an area of , and the third most populous, with an estimated 7 million inhabitants in 2020 ...
as well as for the Indian community of
KwaZulu-Natal KwaZulu-Natal (, also referred to as KZN and known as "the garden province") is a province of South Africa that was created in 1994 when the Zulu bantustan of KwaZulu ("Place of the Zulu" in Zulu) and Natal Province were merged. It is locate ...
. For the former only 10% of jobs would be available in regions where they form a 60% majority. Manyi claimed that there was a "surplus" of Coloureds in the West-Cape and that this 'problem' should be solved by making the members of this community spread over other provinces—a solution similar to that of relocation under apartheid. Manuel's sharp reaction to Manyi's remarks provoked an equally sharp response from Paul Ngobeni, a prominent backer of
Jacob Zuma Jacob Gedleyihlekisa Zuma (; born 12 April 1942) is a South African politician who served as the fourth president of South Africa from 2009 to 2018. He is also referred to by his initials JZ and clan name Msholozi, and was a former anti-aparth ...
and
John Hlophe Yahya John Mandlakayise Hlophe (born 1 January 1959 in Stanger, KwaZulu-Natal) is Judge President of the Western Cape Division of the High Court of South Africa. Background and career Born in Stanger, Natal, he was educated at the Universi ...
.


African Union Covid-19 special envoy and EFF spat

In April 2020,
Cyril Ramaphosa Matamela Cyril Ramaphosa (born 17 November 1952) is a South African businessman and politician who is currently serving as the fifth democratically elected president of South Africa. Formerly an anti-apartheid activist, trade union leader, and ...
,
President of South Africa The president of South Africa is the head of state and head of government of the Republic of South Africa. The president heads the executive branch of the Government of South Africa and is the commander-in-chief of the South African Nationa ...
and Chairperson of the African Union, appointed Manuel as a special envoy in view of the COVID-19 epidemic. The
Economic Freedom Fighters The Economic Freedom Fighters (EFF) is a South African left-wing to far-left pan-Africanist and Marxist–Leninist political party. It was founded by expelled former African National Congress Youth League (ANCYL) President Julius Malema, and hi ...
(EFF) criticised his appointment, alleging that he was a 'puppet' of 'white monopoly capital'. Previously, Manuel had successfully pursued a case for defamation against the EFF in the Johannesburg High Court, after they alleged that he was corruptly involved in the selection of the commissioner of the
South African Revenue Service The South African Revenue Service (SARS) is the revenue service of the South African government. It administers the country's tax system and customs service, and enforces compliance with related legislation. It is governed by the SARS Act 34 of ...
.


Personal life

Trevor Manuel married Lynne Matthews in 1985. The couple had three sons Govan, Pallo and Jaime. The couple separated in 2001 and divorced in 2007. Manuel then married
Maria Ramos Maria Ramos (born 1959) is a South African businesswoman, banker and corporate executive who has been serving the chairperson of AngloGold Ashanti since 2020. She previously served as chief executive officer (CEO) of Absa Group Limited. Prior to ...
on 27 December 2008 at the age of 52.


Controversy

The
Hawks Hawks are birds of prey of the family Accipitridae. They are widely distributed and are found on all continents except Antarctica. * The subfamily Accipitrinae includes goshawks, sparrowhawks, sharp-shinned hawks and others. This subfamily a ...
indicted Manuel and his one-time deputy,
Jabu Moleketi Phillip Jabulani "Jabu" Moleketi (born 15 June 1957, in Pimville) was Deputy Minister of Finance in the Cabinet of South Africa of President Thabo Mbeki Thabo Mvuyelwa Mbeki KStJ (; born 18 June 1942) is a South African politician who was the ...
, to provide affidavits on the creation of a special investigative unit in the South African Revenue Service (SARS) that allegedly spied on politicians. The National Prosecuting Authority (NPA) has been probing the unit in an investigation in which former finance minister
Pravin Gordhan Pravin Jamnadas Gordhan (born 12 April 1949) is a politician and anti-apartheid activist who has held various ministerial posts in the Cabinet of South Africa. He served as Minister of Finance from 2009 until 2014 and again from 2015 until 2017, ...
was summoned.


See also

*
List of people subject to banning orders under apartheid __NOTOC__ This list of people subject to banning orders under apartheid lists a selection of people subject to a "banning order" by the apartheid-era South African government. Banning was a repressive and extrajudicial measure used by the South ...


References


External links

{{DEFAULTSORT:Manuel, Trevor 1956 births Living people Politicians from Cape Town Cape Coloureds South African people of Portuguese descent Commission for Africa members Finance ministers of South Africa Members of the National Assembly of South Africa African National Congress politicians