Four square behind Cyril: The ANC NEC special sitting which deliberated on the Section 89 Constitutional Court judgement, has ruled to support the president fully. Photo: My ANC
The ANC’s national executive committee (NEC) has resolved to close ranks behind President Cyril Ramaphosa after the National Assembly established a parliamentary impeachment committee to investigate the revived Phala Phala scandal.
This week, the National Assembly established a 31-member multi-party committee to participate in the impeachment of Ramaphosa following a Constitutional Court ruling that parliament’s 2022 decision to halt impeachment proceedings against him was unconstitutional.
ANC insiders told the Mail& Guardian that Ramaphosa’s resignation was not discussed as an option during the meeting, with some NEC members expressing satisfaction with Ramaphosa’s decision to remain in office and challenge the report.
“The agreement is clear: we will support the president on this warpath because we believe we have to give him the benefit of the doubt before the committee concludes,” a senior source said.
“The president has not been found guilty of any crime. The Ngcobo report said he has a case to answer and we believe he must be given that right that is why we are fully behind him.”
However, another source said the party felt aggrieved by his decision to address the nation on Monday before addressing the NEC. “The president strongly armed us there because he should’ve first consulted us but we understand the circumstances. We will question his intentions when the dust settles,” the other source said.
A third source said while the party was aware that it would be “hanging itself with the same rope used during former President Jacob Zuma’s tenure,” they were confident the situation would be different.
“We are united as a party that the president should be protected because the situation is not the same as that of JZ’s Nkandla saga. This one is about merit; he did not steal money from the state coffers. It’s about whether he evaded tax or money laundering and remember the Reserve Bank cleared him, so the matters are not the same.”
“However, the matter does weaken us before elections but we will deal with this after the impeachment committee and we dealt a lot about not having a repeat of Nkosazana Zuma who defied the order,” the source said.
ANC national chairperson Gwede Mantashe said Ramaphosa would not resign, also stating that the president had every right to address the nation and that the ANC would defend him.
ANC Veterans’ League president Snuki Zikalala also dismissed calls for Ramaphosa to step down, arguing that the Constitutional Court judgment dealt with parliament’s procedural failures and did not find Ramaphosa guilty of any wrongdoing.
The developments follow public calls by opposition parties, including the ANC’s alliance partner, the South African Communist Party (SACP), for Ramaphosa to resign. Over the weekend, the SACP said the party welcomed the apex Court’s judgment on the impeachment of Ramaphosa.
Party general secretary Solly Mapaila said Ramaphosa’s impeachment should be dealt with speedily, saying that if it is delayed, all state-owned assets would be sold.
“There are people who say they are running Operation Vulindlela who are businessmen and they are sitting right inside the presidency, sharing the resources of this country.
“A new state capture — they are now even trying to sell water to the people.”
Mapaila has been clear that the ANC under the leadership of Ramaphosa has sold out and it respects the Democratic Alliance (DA) and the Patriotic Alliance more than it does its alliance partners.
These were some of the reasons why the SACP resolved that it would contest the elections as an independent party rather than in alliance with the ANC.
Speaking to the M&G this week, Mantashe described the SACP’s calls for Ramaphosa to step down as politics of hatred with no basis.
Mantashe also holds dual membership in both the SACP and ANC but has previously made it clear that he would side with the former liberation movement if the communist party continued to force members to choose an alliance.
In January, during an interview with the M&G, Mantashe said the SACP would pay a heavy price and risk eliminating itself if it contested the 2026 local government elections outside its alliance with the ANC.
He said the SACP was committing political suicide and would pay a heavy price for it.
“Leave the SACP. They are not in Parliament as a party; the party body is not in Parliament. We are here as members, so they can’t talk about parliamentary processes,” Mantashe told M&G this week.
“These are just politics of hatred that have no basis.”
It is believed that Mantashe may have been influential in convincing Ramaphosa not to resign.
Asked whether he was part of those who influenced the president not to resign, Mantashe said Ramaphosa had already stated publicly that he was not resigning, there was no need to discuss who may have influenced him.
“The president has spoken for himself, so why talk about influence now?”
President Cyril Ramaphosa in Parliament. Photo: Phando Jikelo
Ramaphosa has denied any wrongdoing. In a national address on Monday night, he stated he would not resign, arguing that while there have been calls in some circles that “I should resign, nothing in the Constitutional Court judgment compels me to resign my office”.
He announced that he would take the Section 89 panel report on judicial review on an expedited basis.
Ramaphosa explained his decision to challenge the report is to affirm the need for such findings to be correct in law. He argued that accepting the report without challenge “would be to give credence to a panel report that unfortunately has grave flaws”.
A successful impeachment vote would require a two-thirds majority in the National Assembly.
Opposition parties have welcomed the establishment of the committee. They said the process must proceed without interference.
In 2022, the ANC instructed its MPs to vote against adopting the independent Section 89 panel report. Parliament voted against proceeding with impeachment hearings by 214 votes to 148, although a small number of ANC MPs broke ranks.
The Constitutional Court’s ruling, delivered by Chief Justice Mandisa Maya, found that National Assembly Rule 129I, which permitted termination of the impeachment process at a preliminary stage, was inconsistent with the Constitution.
The court declared the 2022 parliamentary vote invalid and ordered that the report be referred to an impeachment committee.
Opposition parties, including the Economic Freedom Fighters, the uMkhonto weSizwe Party and the African Transformation Movement (ATM), called for Ramaphosa’s resignation.
DA leader Geordin Hill-Lewis said parliament must continue with the impeachment inquiry, stating that the DA would participate in the committee while remaining independent.
This week, Hill-Lewis said while the DA supported the impeachment processes, it would not support opportunistic attempts to have the president removed through motions of no confidence before the processes are completed.
The ATM cautioned speaker Thoko Didiza against turning the process into “yet another carefully choreographed parliamentary performance where accountability mysteriously disappears the moment it approaches the doors of the Presidency”.
It warned against procedural delays and attempts to shield the president.
The Phala Phala matter dates back to February 2020. Thieves stole about R10 million in foreign currency allegedly hidden in furniture at Ramaphosa’s game farm. Ramaphosa maintained that the money came from legitimate cattle sales.
He said he reported the theft to authorities but faced questions over the handling of the matter, including the involvement of the Presidential Protection Unit.