Herman Mashaba

The Honourable Councillor
Herman Mashaba
3rd Mayor of the City of Johannesburg
Assumed office
22 August 2016
Preceded by Parks Tau
Personal details
Born (1959-08-26) 26 August 1959
Hammanskraal, Transvaal, South Africa
Nationality South Africa
Political party Democratic Alliance
Spouse(s) Connie Mashaba
Children Khensani Mashaba and Rhulani Mashaba
Alma mater University of Pretoria (BCompt)

Herman Mashaba is a South African entrepreneur, politician and Mayor of Johannesburg. He is the founder of the hair products company Black Like Me.[1][2][3][4][5][6][7][8] He is famous in South Africa for his life story:[9][10] one of growing up and struggling against poverty and the Apartheid government to open his own hair business, which became the biggest hair brand in South Africa, making him a millionaire.[11][12][13] He publicly backed Mmusi Maimane in the Democratic Alliance leadership race.[14][15] He also wrote the book Black Like You which is his autobiography.[16] Philosophically, he is a libertarian and "capitalist crusader" whose highest value is "individual freedom." [17]

On August 22, 2016, Mashaba was voted in as Mayor of Johannesburg by the first sitting of council.[18]

Early life and career

Mashaba was brought up in near-poverty in GaRamotse in Hammanskraal, Gauteng, by his sisters while his absent domestic-worker mother worked to provide for the family.

His older brother dropped out of school at 15, going from one unsubstantial job to another. Mashaba realised that an education would be crucial for him to break out of the cycle of poverty. He graduated from high school, but did not complete his tertiary education.

From a young age he was a strategic thinker - he bought a car without having a license and drove out of the dealership without ever having learned to drive. He drove himself from one selling job to another, in the process confirming for himself that he was a natural salesman with an unswerving instinct for business. He started selling "SuperKurl" African hair-care products and became their number-one earner. He soon realised that these products excited him and that he wasn't content to be just an employee. (Reference: Book titled "South Africa's Greatest Entrepreneurs", compiled by Moky Makura, article written by Isabella Morris)

His company, "Black Like Me", was launched on Valentine’s Day in 1985 with a R30,000 loan from his friend, businessman Walter Dube.[19]

Mashaba is also a music lover. After five years of secret lessons, he revealed himself as a pianist.[20]

Politics

In December 2015, Mashaba announced that he would accept a nomination to stand for Democratic Alliance candidate for Mayor of the City of Johannesburg.

Mashaba stood as the party's City of Johannesburg Mayoral Candidate for the 2016 local government elections. South African Author, Associate Professor, Development Economist, and politician Rabelani Dagada was the other candidate.[21]

Mayor of Johannesburg

In the municipal election on August 3, 2016, the ruling party, The African National Congress, lost their majority in Johannesburg, taking only 44.12% of the vote with the Democratic alliance taking 38.33%.[22] The Democratic Alliance entered into conversations with the Economic Freedom Fighters to form a coalition. Whilst the EFF declined the offer, they agreed that they would vote for Mashaba as the Mayor for Johannesburg, despite misgivings.[23]

On August 22, 2016, Mashaba was sworn in as a Johannesburg City Councillor. Later that day, he was sworn in as the Mayor of Johannesburg, the first non-ANC Johannesburg mayor since 1994.[24]

See also

References

  1. ↑ ENCA News article about Herman Mashaba joining the Democratic Alliance. http://www.enca.com/south-africa/can-black-me-millionaire-mashaba-boost-da
  2. ↑ Economist article which mentions Herman Mashaba and his court case against the South African government wage law. http://www.economist.com/news/middle-east-and-africa/21601533-south-africa-better-place-1994-it-going-wrong
  3. ↑ Bloomberg description of CEO Herman Mashaba of Leswikeng Minerals & Energy Pty. Ltd with a 'Read Full Background' link for a complete history of him. http://www.bloomberg.com/research/stocks/people/person.asp?personId=20592560&ticker=GRT:SJ
  4. ↑ BizNews article about Herman Mashaba's take on BEE, labour laws and education in South Africa. http://www.biznews.com/transformation/2015/05/26/herman-mashaba-on-bee-labour-laws-and-the-state-of-education/
  5. ↑ IOL.co.za Business divided over industrialists scheme (Business Report article about Herman Mashaba's take on the South African governments job creation proposals). http://www.iol.co.za/business/companies/business-divided-over-industrialists-scheme-1.1841035#.VYsJKflViko
  6. ↑ Rand Daily Mail article mentioning Herman Mashaba. http://www.rdm.co.za/lifestyle/2015/05/27/to-which-side-do-you-part-your-hair
  7. ↑ Daily Maverick article criticizing Herman Mashaba's views. http://www.dailymaverick.co.za/opinionista/2015-06-01-unregulated-wages-the-curse-of-the-disposable-worker/#.VYsJH_lViko
  8. ↑ PoliticsWeb article about why Herman Mashaba is joining the DA. http://www.politicsweb.co.za/party/why-im-joining-the-da--herman-mashaba
  9. ↑ MWeb article about the top 10 South African entrepreneurs. Herman Mashaba is among them. http://www.mweb.co.za/Entrepreneur/ViewArticle/tabid/3162/Article/7017/Top-10-South-African-entrepreneurs.aspx
  10. ↑ Mail&Guardian article about Herman Mashaba and about his autobiography, Black Like You. http://mg.co.za/article/2012-08-17-00-capitalists-like-me-its-time-to-speak-truth-to-power
  11. ↑ Daily Maverick article about why Herman Mashaba opposes SA labor legislation. http://www.dailymaverick.co.za/article/2013-04-22-herman-mashaba-scrap-the-licensing-of-businesses-bill-and-limit-bargaining-councils/#.VYsKkflViko
  12. ↑ MoneyWeb article about Herman Mashaba opposition to the labor broker ban law. http://www.moneyweb.co.za/archive/r-1307/
  13. ↑ Sowetan article about Herman Mashaba's take on South African labour law. http://www.sowetanlive.co.za/news/business-news/2012/06/04/labour-law-isn-t-right---herman-mashaba
  14. ↑ Daily Sun article about Herman Mashaba backing Mmusi Maimane for DA leader. http://www.dailysun.co.za/news/2015-05-01-herman-mashaba-backs-maimane
  15. ↑ Business Day magazine article about Herman Mashaba's support for the new DA leader Mmusi Maimane. http://www.bdlive.co.za/national/politics/2015/05/01/herman-mashaba-expresses-support-for-maimane
  16. ↑ Financial Times article about Mashaba and his autobiography. http://www.ft.com/cms/s/0/6a3ff646-10d3-11e3-b291-00144feabdc0.html#axzz3e0mX4D2j
  17. ↑ "Libertarian Herman Mashaba elected mayor of Johannesburg".
  18. ↑ "LIVE: Mayor Mashaba - Corruption is public enemy number 1".
  19. ↑ IOL.co.za The Star article about Mashaba's book Black Like You. http://www.iol.co.za/the-star/story-of-black-like-me-and-the-man-behind-it-1.1297341#.VYsMfflVikp
  20. ↑ "On the streets with Herman Mashaba".
  21. ↑ "Herman Mashaba announced as DA's Joburg mayoral candidate".
  22. ↑ http://www.elections.org.za/content/LGEPublicReports/402/Detailed%20Results/GP/JHB.pdf
  23. ↑ "EFF will vote for Mashaba, says Malema".
  24. ↑ Manyathela, Clement. "Victory for DA as Herman Mashaba is elected Mayor of Johannesburg".
This article is issued from Wikipedia - version of the 10/27/2016. The text is available under the Creative Commons Attribution/Share Alike but additional terms may apply for the media files.