Des van Rooyen

[1] Van Rooyen also held a number of leadership positions in the ANC from 1994 to 2007, during which he was elected as mayor of Merafong City Local Municipality in the central Gauteng province.

[3] Van Rooyen was appointed the Minister of Finance by President Jacob Zuma on 9 December 2015 after the removal of Nhlanhla Nene from the position.

[6] The markets reacted extremely negatively to his appointment as the South African rand dropped as much as 5.4 percent against the dollar in a single day.

[7] President Jacob Zuma reversed his decision late on 13 December 2015 when he announced that Van Rooyen would switch positions with then Minister of Cooperative Governance and Traditional Affairs, Pravin Gordhan.

[9] Van Rooyen's four-day tenure as Minister of Finance earned him the nickname "Weekend Special" in South African media.