Steenkamp honours late mother for her success

Education minister Sanet Steenkamp on Tuesday invoked the memories of her late mother, Maria Cloete, highlighting how she prioritised her children’s education despite having limited resources.

“She sacrificed everything to give us a chance at education, believing that learning was the medicine for generational healing. Though she lacked material resources, she never wavered in dignity or purpose.

“Her strength, her quiet rebellion against limitation and her fierce belief in my potential form the foundation of my leadership today,” Steenkamp said about her mother, a former domestic worker and hostel cook.

Steenkamp said her positions in government, which includes being a teacher, regional education director, executive director, and now a Cabinet minister, represent a continuation of her mother’s life work.

“Her hands, once cleaning the homes of others, cleared the path I now walk in government. She ran with invisible wolves, howling silently so I could one day speak boldly. I carry her legacy with me, bringing her wisdom into spaces she never entered but always belonged,” she said.
Steenkamp honoured her late mother in her maiden statement as a member of parliament and minister of education, innovation, youth, sports, arts and culture in the National Assembly on Tuesday.

President Netumbo Nandi-Ndaitwah appointed the Karasburg-born Steenkamp to her first ministerial portfolio following her role as executive director in the Ministry of Education, Arts and Culture.

“I pledge to support policies that tackle underlying issues rather than symptoms, prioritising human rights and long-term national well-being over short-term political gains,” she said while further pledging to speak truthfully and decisively in parliament.

The minister also pledged to advocate funding that protects vulnerable populations, even if it requires challenging powerful interests and opposing wasteful spending.

“Like our president [Netumbo Nandi-Ndaitwah], I am committed to defending our natural resources, understanding ecological health as non-negotiable. The ongoing crisis of gender-based violence must be addressed not just with sympathy, but with systemic reforms that shift power dynamics in our communities,” Steenkamp said.

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