The Deputy President of South Africa is the acting President of South Africa when the President is outside the country's borders, unable to fulfill the duties of the office, or when the Presidency is vacant. The Deputy President is also a member of the National Assembly and the Cabinet. The Deputy President is constitutionally required to 'assist the President in the execution of the functions of government,' and may be assigned any government portfolio by presidential proclamation.
Under the interim constitution (valid from 1994 to 1996), there was a Government of National Unity, in which a member of parliament from the largest opposition party was entitled to a position as deputy president. Along with Mbeki, the previous State President, F.W. De Klerk also served as Deputy President in his capacity as the leader of the National Party, then the second-largest party in the new Parliament. De Klerk later resigned and went into opposition with his party. A voluntary coalition government continues to exist under the new constitution (adopted in 1996), although there have been no appointments of opposition politicians to the post of deputy president.
The current deputy president, appointed by President Jacob Zuma on 10 May 2009, is former president Kgalema Motlanthe.
Read more about Deputy President Of South Africa: Inception and Expiry of Term, List of Deputy Presidents of South Africa, 1994–present
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