The DA congratulates Baxolile ‘Bax’ Nodada on his election as the party’s new Deputy Chief Whip in the National Assembly. The DA also wishes to congratulate Desiree van der Walt’s election as the party’s new Caucus Chairperson.
Bax, who stood unopposed, is a Nelson Mandela University alumnus where he served as the Secretary General of the SRC, as well as DASO’s first chairperson of NMU’s South Campus branch after joining the DA in 2011.
In 2016, he was elected as the youngest councillor in Nelson Mandela Bay, aged 24.
He graduated from the DA’s Young Leader Programme in 2018 and was elected to Parliament the following 2019 where he served as the DA’s Shadow Deputy Minister of Higher Education, Science and Technology, Shadow Minister for Basic Education and the DA Constituency Head of Alfred Nzo.
He also served as Parliamentary Counsellor to the Leader of the Opposition.
He also sat on the Committee for Section 194 Enquiry, which determined Busisiwe Mkhwebane’s fitness as Public Protector and he holds a BA degree in political science and economics and an honours degree in public administration and conflict.
The Polokwane-born Desiree van der Walt served as Ward Councillor in the Roodepoort City Council from 1995 – 2000.
She was the DA Limpopo Leader until June 2012 and had two stints in the National Assembly: between 2004 and 2010 and again from 2014 to 2023.
During her first stint, she was the former DA National Spokesperson for Arts and Culture.
We wish our colleagues the best of luck in their new positions.