Tebogo Mokwele

Mokwele was born in Swartruggens in the present-day North West. Her mother worked at a clinic, while her father was an artist. She started her political career at 14.{{Cite web |last=Head |first=Tom |date=2019-08-19 |title=Who is Tebogo Mokwele? The EFF MP who got R40 000 from Cyril Ramaphosa |url=https://www.thesouthafrican.com/news/who-is-tebogo-mokwele-eff-mp-money-from-cyril-ramaphosa/ |access-date=2023-01-16 |website=The South African |language=en-ZA}}

Mokwele joined the Economic Freedom Fighters and was named to the party's central command team, the party's highest decision-making structure in 2013.{{Cite web |last=Ngwenya |first=Oliver |date=2014-06-02 |title=EFF's Parliamentary Leadership Structure Announced {{!}} The Public News Hub |url=http://www.publicnewshub.com/effs-parliamentary-leadership-structure-announced/ |access-date=2023-01-16 |website=www.publicnewshub.com |language=en-US}}

Mokwele stood for the National Assembly in the 2014 national and provincial elections and was elected to the lower house of parliament as the EFF won 25 seats.{{Cite web |title=2014 elections: List of EFF MPs elected to the National Assembly - DOCUMENTS {{!}} Politicsweb |url=https://www.politicsweb.co.za/documents/2014-elections-list-of-eff-mps-elected-to-the-nati |access-date=2023-01-16 |website=www.politicsweb.co.za |language=en}} Mokwele was, however, elected by the North West Provincial Legislature as an EFF permanent delegate to the National Council of Provinces, the upper house of parliament. She was then appointed Whip of the EFF caucus in the NCOP.{{Cite web |title=Who are the key leaders of Malema's EFF? |url=https://www.news24.com/news24/who-are-the-key-leaders-of-malemas-eff-20140602 |access-date=2023-01-16 |website=News24 |language=en-US}}

In August 2015, Mokwele was forcefully removed from the NCOP by security after she refused to leave the chamber following an instruction from the sergeant-at-arms. She was the first MP to be removed using the new parliamentary rules.{{Cite web |title=EFF MP kicked out of Parliament {{!}} eNCA |url=https://www.enca.com/south-africa/eff-mp-kicked-out-parliament |access-date=2023-01-16 |website=www.enca.com |language=en}}

Mokwele continued serving in the NCOP until the May 2019 general election when she was elected to the National Assembly.{{Cite web |title=SEE: These are the people who will represent you in Parliament, provincial legislatures |url=https://www.news24.com/news24/elections/news/see-these-are-the-people-who-will-represent-you-in-parliament-provincial-legislatures-20190515 |access-date=2023-01-16 |website=News24 |language=en-US}} She was appointed to the Portfolio Committee on Labour and Employment and the Joint Standing Committee on the Financial Management of Parliament.{{Cite web |title=Ramaphosa is treating Pravin Gordhan like a god - EFF - DOCUMENTS {{!}} Politicsweb |url=https://www.politicsweb.co.za/documents/ramaphosa-is-treating-pravin-gordhan-like-a-god--e |access-date=2023-01-16 |website=www.politicsweb.co.za |language=en}}

On 18 August 2019, the EFF revealed that Mokwele had received R40,000 from ANC president Cyril Ramaphosa's CR17 presidential campaign account. It later emerged that Mokwele had received R80,000 and not just R40,000 from Ramaphosa. She had received money from Ramaphosa on two occasions: in 2017 when she was part of a parliamentary project and in 2019 when she received money for a personal bereavement.{{Cite web |last=Davis |first=Rebecca |date=2019-08-20 |title=ANALYSIS: #CR17 email leaks: Separating the myths from the facts, Part Two |url=https://www.dailymaverick.co.za/article/2019-08-21-cr17-email-leaks-separating-the-myths-from-the-facts-part-two/ |access-date=2023-01-17 |website=Daily Maverick |language=en}} The following day, she and fellow EFF MP Nkagisang Mokgosi, who had also received money from Ramaphosa, submitted their resignation from Parliament and the EFF Central Command Team.{{Cite web |author=Staff Reporter |title=EFF's Nkagisang Mokgosi resigns after damning CR17 leak |url=https://www.iol.co.za/news/effs-nkagisang-mokgosi-resigns-after-damning-cr17-leak-30992714 |access-date=2023-01-17 |website=www.iol.co.za |language=en}} Mokwele said in her resignation letter that she did not inform the EFF leadership but later said in an interview with journalist Stephen Grootes that she did inform the EFF leadership, contradicting her resignation statement.{{Cite web |last=Dlwati |first=Vukile |date=2019-08-19 |title=Tebogo Mokwele bows out of EFF, after accepting money from Ramaphosa |url=https://www.power987.co.za/news/tebogo-mokwele-bows-out-of-eff-after-accepting-money-from-ramaphosa/ |access-date=2023-01-16 |website=POWER 98.7 |language=en-US}}{{Cite web |title=Two EFF MPs resign over CR17 campaign money |url=https://www.news24.com/news24/two-eff-mps-resign-over-cr17-campaign-money-20190819 |access-date=2023-01-16 |website=News24 |language=en-US}}

In 2019, it was revealed that Mokwele had suffered a miscarriage in 2016 after having been removed by parliamentary security for saying that president Jacob Zuma was not fit to address NCOP members.{{Cite web|date=2019-03-13 |title=EFF MP suffers miscarriage after being violently removed from parliament |url=https://www.citizen.co.za/news/south-africa/politics/eff-mp-suffers-miscarriage-after-being-violently-removed-from-parliament/ |access-date=2023-01-16 |website=The Citizen |language=en}}

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Category:Living people

Category:Tswana people

Category:Economic Freedom Fighters politicians

Category:Members of the National Assembly of South Africa 2024–2029

Category:Women members of the National Assembly of South Africa

Category:Members of the National Council of Provinces

Category:Women members of the National Council of Provinces

Category:Year of birth missing (living people)

Category:Members of the National Assembly of South Africa 2019–2024

Category:Members of the National Assembly of South Africa 2014–2019