United States of America (USA) president Joe Biden, Ukraine’s Volodymyr Zelenskyy and others have congratulated Cyril Ramaphosa on his re-election as president.
Ramaphosa was elected during the first sitting of the National Assembly at the Cape Town International Convention Centre (CTICC) on Friday, 14 June.
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Ramaphosa was nominated alongside the Economic Freedom Fighters (EFF) leader Julius Malema for the position, received 283 votes, while Malema came in with 44 votes. Twelve votes were spoiled.
His re-election follows in the footsteps of Thabo Mbeki and Jacob Zuma, who were also two-term presidents. However, Mbeki and Zuma did not complete their terms as both were recalled before completing their tenures.
In his victory speech, the president-elect thanked MPs and accepted the challenge of the next five years.
“I am humbled and honoured that members of the National Assembly have, through their votes, decided to elect me to be president of the Republic of South Africa. Thank you very much.
“It is with pleasure that I accept. It will be a privilege and pleasure to serve this great nation in the position of president,” said Ramaphosa.
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Zelenskyy took to X to wish Ramaphosa continued successful work for the benefit of the people of South Africa.
He said Ukraine is interested in advancing its mutually beneficial bilateral cooperation.
“We also value South Africa’s participation in the Global Peace Summit and our joint efforts to restore just peace in Ukraine.
“We look forward to continuing our work on implementing the Peace Formula and restoring the full force of the UN Charter,” he wrote.
US President Joe Biden congratulated Ramaphosa on his re-election as president of the Republic of South Africa. He commended all the political parties for working together to form a Government of National Unity.
Biden also sent his warm wishes to the people of South Africa as 2024 marks 30 years of democracy.
“They have demonstrated the enduring power of government of the people, by the people, and for the people. I look forward to the United States and South Africa continuing our work together, to expand economic opportunity, invest in clean energy solutions, and demonstrate that democracy delivers.”
