Hassan Isilow
23 May 2019•Update: 23 May 2019
JOHANNESBURG
South Africa's parliament on Wednesday elected Cyril Ramaphosa, 66, president of the republic.
Chief Justice Mogoeng Mogoeng, who presided over the election ceremony, declared Ramaphosa as the duly elected president after he was nominated unopposed.
South Africa held elections on May 8 which Ramaphosa’s ruling African National Congress (ANC) won with a reduced majority after obtaining 58% of the vote.
The ANC obtained 230 seats out of the 400-seat national Parliament. It lost 14 seats in the current 6th democratic parliament.
South Africa, which subscribes to a proportional representation political system, allows voters to elect members of parliament who later elect the president during the first session of parliament.
The ANC’s Thandi Modise was elected speaker of the National Assembly and will be assisted by Solomon Lechesa Tsenoli as deputy speaker.
Leaders of opposition parties in parliament congratulated Ramaphosa for being elected president and urged him to fight corruption, grow the economy and create jobs -- some of the main issues affecting South Africans.
“Honorable president I congratulate you, but there is huge responsibility on your shoulders. The people of South Africa need hope. You must ensure that the interest of the people are more important than the interests of your party the ANC," Pieter Groenewald leader of the mainly white VF Plus' party advised Ramaphosa after his election.
Julius Malema, leader of the Economic Freedom Fighters, the third-largest party urged the president to fight corruption and be weary of siding with some business interest groups which he referred to as "white monopoly capital".
In his acceptance speech, Ramaphosa assured the nation that he will work for the benefit of all citizens in pushing the country forward.
