Stella Tembisa Ndabeni-Abrahams (born 30 June 1978, in Mthatha, Eastern Cape) is a South African politician.
She serves as the Minister of Communications, Telecommunications and Postal Services.
She was the Deputy Minister of Communication and is a member of the Eastern Cape Provincial Executive Committee (PEC).
Stella is also a member of the Eastern Cape African National Congress Provincial Working Committee.
Profile
| Name | Stella Tembisa Ndabeni-Abrahams |
| Born | 30 June 1978 (age 43 years) Mthatha, Eastern Cape |
| Nationality | South African |
| Birthday | June 30 |
| Gender | Female |
| Husband | Thato Abrahams |
| Profession | Politician |
Age
Her date of birth is on Friday, June 30, 1978, and the place of birth is in Mthatha, Eastern Cape in South Africa. Stella Tembisa Ndabeni-Abrahams is 43 years old.
Husband
Stella Ndabeni-Abrahams is married to Thato Abrahams, a businessman. The couple is blessed with three (3) children.
Background
She was born in the Sakhela village, near Mthatha in Eastern Cape. Ndabeni-Abrahams is the firstborn child of her parents and has five siblings.
She attended the Holy Cross Senior Secondary School in Mthatha.
Education
She obtained an Advanced Certificate in Project Management from Rhodes University.
Stella also holds a Commonwealth Telecommunication Organization Diploma in Telecommunication and Management System.
She also holds a Certificate in Telecommunications, Policy, and Regulation Management. Stella obtained a certificate from the University of Witwatersrand (Wits University).
Career
She served under the position of the Deputy Minister of the Department of Communication. Stella held the position for three years, from May 2014 to March 2017.
Stella occupied the same position in the Department of Telecommunication and Postal Service, then Doc, before the 2014 elections. She served for three years, from October 2011 to May 2014.
She served as a Project Manager for the Eastern Cape Socio-Economic Consultative Council for six years (2003 – 2019).
In November 2018, Ndabeni-Abrahams was appointed to serve as the Minister of Communication, Telecommunications, and Postal Service.
Controversy
In April 2020, during the 21-day national lockdown following the COVID-19 pandemic in the country, she was caught in the middle of a nationwide controversy.
This followed after a photo was posted online by Mduduzi Manana, an ANC NEC member. The picture contained Stella and Mduduzi having launch. She was then dragged and criticized for not following the lockdown regulations.
President Cyril Ramaphosa asked her for an explanation on why she happened to have broken the lockdown regulations.
He further directed her to publicly apologize to the nation. Stella followed the direction of the president and released a ‘video of apology’ to the president and the nation.
Her apolog was accepted by the president, she received a two months suspension with a month’s salary being withheld. Stella also paid a fine of One thousand Rand.