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Abe Williams

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Abe Williams
Member of the National Assembly
In office
9 May 1994 – 14 August 2000
ConstituencyWestern Cape
Minister of Welfare and Population Development
In office
May 1994 – February 1996
PresidentNelson Mandela
Preceded byJac Rabie
Succeeded byPatrick McKenzie
Minister of Sport
In office
February 1993 – April 1994
PresidentF. W. de Klerk
Succeeded bySteve Tshwete
Personal details
Born
Abraham Williams

(1940-12-12)12 December 1940(age 83)
CitizenshipSouth Africa
Political partyNew National Party
National Party

Abraham Williams(born 12 December 1940) is a retired South African politician from theWestern Cape.He was the lastapartheid-eraMinister of Sportfrom 1993 to 1994 and then was the first post-apartheidMinister of Welfare and Population Developmentfrom 1994 to 1996.

Latterly a member of theNational Party(NP) andNew National Party(NNP), Williams served in theNational Assemblyuntil August 2000, when he was convicted offraudand incarcerated. He served one year of a three-year prison sentence before receiving parole in September 2001.

Early life and career

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Born on 12 December 1940,[1]Williams was formerly a prominentrugbyadministrator. Designated asColouredunder apartheid, he served in theHouse of Representatives,the all-Coloured house of theTricameral Parliament,[2]where he was a member of the Ministers' Council.[3]

In February 1993, PresidentF. W. de Klerkannounced that he had appointed Williams tohis cabinetin a reshuffle, naming him as Minister of Sport. He and two others appointed at the same time –Jac RabieandBhadra Ranchod– became the first non-white politicians to serve in theSouth African cabinet,in a move viewed as an attempt by de Klerk's party, the NP, to broaden its appeal ahead of the upcoming multiracial elections.[2][4]In May 1993, Williams told theWashington Post,"I think Coloureds have great respect for[Nelson] Mandela,but we fear theANC".[5]

Post-apartheid political career

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Minister of Welfare: 1994–1996

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In the1994 general election,Williams was elected to represent the NP in the new multi-racial National Assembly.[6]In addition, newly elected President Nelson Mandela appointed Williams to his multi-partyGovernment of National Unityas Minister of Welfare and Population Development. TheMail & Guardianwas highly critical of Williams's performance in that portfolio: for two consecutive years in 1994 and 1995, the newspaper awarded Williams's work a score of two out of ten, quipping that Williams had "shown a keen interest in welfare – his own".[7]

Backbencher: 1996–2000

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In February 1996, less than two years into the legislative term, Williams's homes and offices inCape TownandPretoriawere raided by law enforcement officers, who said that they were at an early stage of afraudinvestigation. Later the same day, Williams tendered his resignation from the cabinet,[8]though he emphasised that his resignation was not an admission of guilt.[9]

He remained an ordinary Member of Parliament and was re-elected to a second term in his seat in the1999 general election,serving theWestern Cape constituency.[1]However, the law enforcement investigation continued (seebelow), and after Williams's criminal conviction, he left his parliamentary seat on 14 August 2000, ceding his seat toJohnny Schippers.[10]

Fraud conviction

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In June 1999, shortly after the second democratic elections, Williams was charged with several counts of fraud andcorruption.[3]The charges pertained to his time as a member of the Ministers' Council in the House of Representatives: he was accused of having acceptedkickbacksfrom two companies which did business with the state. He was also charged withtheft,in connection with political donations that he had accepted for his community work on theCape West Coastbut had allegedly used for private purposes instead.[11]The NNP said that he would retain his parliamentary seat until the trial was concluded, though he resigned as deputy chairman of the NNP caucus in Parliament.[3]

In June 2000,[12]theCape High Courtconvicted Williams on 36 counts of theft (in connection with an amount ofR268,142 in donations) and four counts of fraud (in connection with an amount of R240,112).[13]He was handed a suspended sentence for the theft convictions but was sentenced to three years in prison on the fraud charges.[14]His appeals were unsuccessful,[15]and his prison sentence began in early September 2000.[11]

Williams served just over a year inPollsmoor Prisonbefore he was paroled in September 2001.[13]Upon his release, he would not comment on his professional plans, saying, "I've always been a community man and I will try to serve my community irrespective of whether or not I am in politics".[16]He gave a partial account of his actions:

If I must say sorry, then I apologise to communities I might have hurt, and the world. I made mistakes and I paid the price. I have no regrets about going to prison... It was not my intention to pocket the money. Although most of the money I used was spent on political-party work, the law found me guilty of fraud. I accept that.[17]

References

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  1. ^ab"General Notice: Notice 1319 of 1999 – Electoral Commission: Representatives Elected to the Various Legislatures"(PDF).Government Gazette of South Africa.Vol. 408, no. 20203. Pretoria, South Africa:Government of South Africa.11 June 1999.Retrieved26 March2021.
  2. ^abKeller, Bill (22 February 1993)."De Klerk Names Three Nonwhites to Cabinet Posts".The New York Times.ISSN0362-4331.Retrieved19 May2023.
  3. ^abc"Williams should quit: ANC".The Mail & Guardian.26 June 1999.Retrieved19 May2023.
  4. ^"De Klerk appoints multi-racial Cabinet".UPI.20 February 1993.Retrieved26 April2023.
  5. ^Taylor, Paul (10 May 1993)."Mixed-race S. Africans courted".Washington Post.ISSN0190-8286.Retrieved19 May2023.
  6. ^South Africa: Campaign and Election Report April 26–29, 1994.International Republican Institute.1994.Retrieved13 April2023– via Yumpu.
  7. ^"How well did the Cabinet do this year".The Mail & Guardian.22 December 1995.Retrieved19 May2023.
  8. ^"SA Minister quits post".The Irish Times.22 February 1996.Retrieved19 May2023.
  9. ^"South Africa's Welfare and Population Development Minister Abe Williams".UPI.21 February 1996.Retrieved19 May2023.
  10. ^"The National Assembly List of Resinations and Nominations".Parliament of South Africa.2 June 2002. Archived fromthe originalon 2 June 2002.Retrieved2 April2023.
  11. ^ab"Abe Williams to start 3-yr jail term on Saturday".News24.7 September 2000.Retrieved19 May2023.
  12. ^"Former minister found guilty of theft".The Mail & Guardian.21 June 2000.Retrieved19 May2023.
  13. ^ab"Abe Williams walks free".News24.25 September 2001.Retrieved19 May2023.
  14. ^"Williams sentenced to jail term".The Mail & Guardian.28 June 2000.Retrieved19 May2023.
  15. ^"Abe Williams denied leave to appeal".The Mail & Guardian.6 July 2000.Retrieved19 May2023.
  16. ^"Abe Williams walks after serving a year".The Mail & Guardian.25 September 2001.Retrieved19 May2023.
  17. ^"Disgraced Abe Williams says sorry".IOL.25 September 2001.Retrieved19 May2023.
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