President Cyril Ramaphosa. Photo: Rajesh Jantilal/AFP
President Cyril Ramaphosa will not make a televised announcement on his political future as planned on Thursday evening, ending speculation — temporarily at least — that he was about to step down as head of state.
Ramaphosa’s spokesperson, Vincent Magwenya, apologised for the change in plans but said that the president was “consulting a variety of roleplayers” about a damning section 89 panel report about his conduct over the 2020 theft at his Phala Phala game farm. Magwenya said the consultations were a process that “can not be conducted in haste” and had to be in the best interests of the country.
The panel led by former chief justice Sandile Ngcogo delivered its report to parliament on Wednesday, making four adverse findings against Ramaphosa, including that he might have violated the Prevention and Combating of Corrupt Activities Act by failing to report the theft of $580 000 from the Limpopo farm..
Magwenya said Ramaphosa needed time to “process the report” and “get the benefit of a variety of views” so that he would have “considered all factors that could be considered” before taking any course of action.
The president was talking to leaders of the ANC, its alliance partners, civil society and other sectors before making a final decision.
Magwenya could not comment on whether Ramaphosa would resign or take the report on review — or whether he would carry on with his usual duties — saying that an announcement would be made in coming days.
The announcement came at the end of a day of furious speculation about whether Ramaphosa would stay on and fight the impeachment process — set to enter its next stage with a debate of the report in parliament on 6 December — or resign. Parliament will vote on whether to continue with the impeachment process, which includes public hearings.
The panel found that Ramaphosa may have committed a serious violation of the Constitution by undertaking paid work in running the farm and that he may have committed serious misconduct by acting in a way that was inconsistent with his office.
It also found that he may have committed serious misconduct by exposing himself to a conflict of interest between his private business and his official duties.
The release of the report sparked a storm of calls for Ramaphosa to resign immediately from opposition parties, and from members of the ANC national executive committee (NEC), including failed presidential hopefuls Nkosazana Dlamini-Zuma and Lindiwe Sisulu.
Ramaphosa cancelled a scheduled question and answer session in the National Council of Provinces (NCOP) on Thursday afternoon and spent the morning locked in talks with his advisers and allies at his Tuinhuis office in Cape Town.
The Democratic Alliance (DA) on Thursday said it would try to trigger an early general election using section 50(1) of the Constitution, arguing that simply recalling Ramaphosa would mean South Africa being led by a president with no mandate for the next 18 months.
DA leader John Steenhuisen will bring a motion in the National Assembly to vote for the dissolution of Ramaphosa’s government — which can be carried by a simple majority of 50% plus one — which would trigger an early election.
“I will table this motion in the National Assembly and I will call on all members of the house, regardless of party or affiliation, to support it so we can urgently close this chapter of corruption and get back to dealing with our country’s many challenges,” Steenhuisen said.
For the motion to succeed, Steenhuisen will need not only the buy-in of all the opposition parties in the house, but also either support — or abstentions or spoiled votes —from a significant number of the MPs belonging to the ANC, which took 57.7% of the vote in 2019.
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