Biography
Mpho Phalatse (born 7 November 1977) is a renowned South African medical doctor. She is also a politician and serves as the Mayor of Johannesburg. She belongs to the political party Democratic Alliance and became the Mayor-elect on 22 November 2021.
After being elected to the position, Mpho broke the record as the first woman to occupy the position. Before this role, she served as a member of the Mayoral Committee (MMC) in Joburg for Health and Social Development (2016-2019).
Mpho Phalatse |
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| Mayor of Johannesburg | |
| Full Name: | Mpho Phalatse |
| Born: | 7 November 1977 (age 44) |
| Place of Birth: | Hebron, Pretoria, Transvaal Province, South Africa |
| Ethnicity: | Black |
| Nationality: | South African |
| Political party: | Democratic Alliance |
| Residence: | Johannesburg, Gauteng, South Africa |
| Siblings: | N/A |
| Husband • Spouse: | N/A |
| Children: | 3 |
| Occupation: | Medical doctor, Politician, Legislator |
| Education: | MEDUNSA (MBChB), Sefako Makgatho University |
Early life
She was born Mpho Phalatse in Hebron in Pretoria, South Africa on 7 November 1977. Growing up, she went to live with her grandmother.
There she stayed during the early days of her life and later went to live with her parents. To join her parents who were both teachers, she had to relocate from Hebron to Mabopane.
Qualifications
After her primary school education, Mpho Phalatse furthered her academics in a recognized secondary school. In 1994, the renowned politician had her matriculation.
In 1995, she gained admission into the University of Witwatersrand. In Wits, she studied Chemical Engineering but wanted to study medicine.
The love she had for medicine was strong and made her decide to pursue her dream. While she was in her second year, Mpho Phalatse enrolled at Sefako Makgatho University and MEDUNSA. After she completed her studies, she obtained an MBChB.
In 2005, she qualified to work as a doctor and interned at Tembisa Hospital. At Hammanskraal, she did community service. Later, Mpho Phalatse offered services at Jubilee Hospital.
While she was on community service, she began to study project management at Cranefield College.
Mpho Phalatse achieved an advanced diploma and postgraduate diploma in Project Management and Programme Management.
She got admission at the University of Witwatersrand (Wits University) in 2011 for a Master of Medicine.
She is also a Certified Independent Medical Examiner (CIME) with the American Board of Independent Medical Examiners (ABIME). At the Alexandra Community Health, she served as the causality officer.
She was also a sexual assault care practitioner at the Far East Rand Hospital. Mpho Phalatse was also a member of the Professional Conduct Committee of the Health Professions Council of South Africa.
Politics
She became a member of the official opposition party to the ruling party, the Democratic Alliance. In 2016, Mpho Phalatse joined the Johannesburg City council after an election.
She was later appointed as a member of the mayoral committee for Health and Social Development by Herman Mashaba.
In June 2018, She received a suspension for making the statement “the city and herself were now friends of Israel”. After serving the suspension for 14 days, she returned to the position.
She served on the Mayoral Committee until November 2019. In August 2019, John Steenhuisen announced that Phalatse was chosen as the DA’s mayoral candidate.
She would be the party’s candidate for the City of Johannesburg for the local government elections. The elections were scheduled to hold on November 1, 2021.
On 22 November 2021, following the first council meeting, she won the election making her the city’s first black female mayor. Out of 265 votes, she received a total of 144.
Personal life
Mpho Phalatse is a single mother and is proud of her 3 children. When she is not working, she is either walking, meditating, hiking, or taking long drives. She enjoys eating chicken livers, brown pap, and garlic prawn. She enjoys reading the Holy Bible and also enjoys listening to the singer Ella Fitzgerald.
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