Fired: Sisisi Tolashe has rejected the allegations of corruption and mismanagement. Photo: Phando Jikelo / RSA Parliament
President Cyril Ramaphosa has fired Sisisi Tolashe as minister of social development amid mounting pressure over allegations of irregular appointments and misconduct in her office.
Ramaphosa appointed Sindisiwe Chikunga, the minister of women, youth and persons with disabilities, as interim minister of social development.
Tolashe has aced growing scrutiny in recent weeks over allegations of corruption linked to her tenure at the department.
In April 2026, a parliamentary probe found that a department employee appointed as a “food aide” worked at Tolashe’s East London home as a nanny to her grandchildren and was allegedly required to hand over half her salary to Tolashe’s daughter.
The employee allegedly had to split her monthly salary of R15,670, with half paid to Tolashe’s daughter for household expenses.
The Democratic Alliance (DA) and ActionSA subsequently laid criminal charges against Tolashe and submitted complaints to the public protector and parliament’s ethics committee.
In a letter to Ramaphosa, DA leader Geordin Hill-Lewis called on the president to remove Tolashe as an example of clean governance in the government of national unity.
“President Ramaphosa has previously shown that he is prepared to act where the continued presence of a Minister undermines confidence in public office. That principle cannot now be applied selectively. The standard for remaining in Cabinet is not the same as the standard for criminal conviction,” he said.
Hill-Lewis said ministers must be able to lead their departments with credibility, integrity and public confidence and a minister responsible for social development cannot operate under a growing cloud of allegations involving personal benefit, family enrichment and the possible misuse of public resources.
“The Department of Social Development serves pensioners, children, people with disabilities, grant beneficiaries and families who depend on the state in moments of deep hardship. It must be an example of care, integrity and service,” he said.
Recent controversy concerns the allegation that she failed to declare two BAIC Beijing X55 SUVs worth about R1-million donated by the Chinese embassy, which were allegedly registered in her children’s names.
Investigation records showed the vehicles were registered in the names of her children, Nanilethu and Kanyisa Tolashe and that one of the vehicles was later sold.
Tolashe said the vehicles had been donated to the ANC women’s league, where she serves as president.
In a statement, ActionSA said its criminal charges of corruption, filed at the Public Protector for violations of the Executive Ethics Act, was the first to expose Tolashe’s theft of official vehicles donated by the Chinese embassy.
“This outcome did not come from decisive leadership. It came only after relentless and sustained pressure by ActionSA,” it said.
“The fact that the Government of National Unity required such immense pressure to act against a Minister so clearly implicated in wrongdoing exposes a troubling truth: this administration of 76 Ministers and deputies is simply a Cabinet of Corruption that protects perpetrators of wrongdoing.”
Tolashe also appointed a 22-year-old with allegedly falsified qualifications and no experience to a R1.4-million-a-year chief of staff position. The appointee was the niece of her special adviser, Ngwako Kgatla.
On 13 May 2026, Kgatla was suspended after a PSC report found he had falsified his CV to secure the appointment. He also faces separate allegations of drawing two state salaries simultaneously from another government department.
Tolashe was also slated for a R3-million department trip to New York. She denied any wrongdoing and argued the expense was necessary to attend a United Nations Women’s conference.
She was criticised for defying Ramaphosa by unlawfully extending the contract of former director general Peter Netshipale by five years, initiated unsanctioned disciplinary processes and unilaterally advertised the position.
Tolashe has rejected the allegations of corruption and mismanagement, describing them as part of a smear campaign. She has blamed former departmental spokesperson Lumka Oliphant for leaking information following her dismissal.
“I did not appoint an unqualified person in my office. I did not defy Cabinet and the president by giving the Director-General a five-year contract, against the one year that was recommended,” said Tolashe in a statement.
When questioned in parliament about the state-funded employee allegedly sharing her salary with Tolashe’s family, Tolashe said she was unaware of the arrangement and claimed it was a private matter between her daughter and the employee.
Tolashe also denied personally benefiting from the SUVs, saying they had been kept at her home on behalf of the ANC women’s league. She did not explain why the vehicles had been registered in her children’s names.
Leaked audio recordings also allegedly captured Tolashe telling colleagues she intended to avoid answering certain questions from parliament’s social development portfolio committee.
Despite mounting pressure from opposition parties, she repeatedly said she would not resign voluntarily and would leave office only if instructed to do so by Ramaphosa.
