Rural Development. Solly Malatsi had been re-appointed by Steenhuisen as the party spokesperson after he resigned back in November 2020. Steenhuisen had been under pressure to remove Mazzone as chief whip by DA MPs. In April 2022, The Sunday Times reported that several senior members of the DA caucus, including Steenhuisen himself, disapproved of Mazzone's performance. 2022 visit to Ukraine In April 2022, John Steenhuisen went on a six-day 'fact-finding' trip to Ukraine. His trip has been criticized, by many who said that he should focus on local South African issues. In response, Steenhuisen stated that 'The criticism for visiting Ukraine is not fair and is immature'. After initially declining to reveal the trip's funders, Steenhuisen later revealed that trip was funded by the Brenthurst Foundation. Following the trip Steenhuisen held a brief press conference, which did not allow for questions from the press. COVID-19 pandemic During the COVID-19 pandemic, the DA launched a coronavirus information channel. On 8 May 2020, Steenhuisen delivered a speech in which he called for the national lockdown to be ended. Steenhuisen called the lockdown “destructive” and said, “there is no longer a justification to keep this hard lockdown in place.” He also said that the DA had written to the International Monetary Fund and filed a PAIA complaint to obtain the minutes of the National Command Council's decision to retain the tobacco ban. Personal life He currently resides in Umhlanga (an upmarket suburb in KwaZulu Natal) and is a supporter of the Sharks rugby union team and AmaZulu F.C. football club. Steenhuisen was married for 10 years to Julie Steenhuisen (née Wright), a fellow Durban native. They were divorced in October 2010 amid Steenhuisen's affair with Terrry Beaumont, the wife of the DA's former KwaZulu-Natal director Michael Baeumont. Steenhuisen has two daughters from his first marriage. He is now married to Terry, and they have a daughter together. He is fluent in both English and Afrikaans. In an August 2022 interview on "Podcast and Chill" with MacG and Sol Phenduka, when MacG asked Steenhuisen "What is roadkill?". He responded, jokingly, that it "sounds a lot like my ex-wife… flat chicken." Gender activists stated that "even in jest, falls far short of standards of responsible and gender-sensitive political leadership" and questioned the timing of the joke (made during women's month). References External links Mr John Henry Steenhuisen – Parliament of South Africa John Steenhuisen Federal