Johannesburg - Pressure mounts on President Cyril Ramaphosa to step down following adverse findings against him by the Section 89 independent inquiry, which found Ramaphosa has a serious prima facie case to answer regarding the Phala Phala Farmgate scandal.
On Wednesday, the panel chaired by retired chief justice Sandile Ngcobo handed over the report to the Speaker of the National Assembly, Nosiviwe Mapisa-Nqakula, who later in the day made the report public.
The Section 89 panel found prima facie evidence against the president, following allegations against him concerning the robbery at his game farm in February 2020, where millions of dollars in foreign currency were allegedly stolen and later recovered in Namibia. The president failed to report the matter to the law enforcement agencies and also failed to declare the money and its source of origin, which further complicated the matter.
The panel said the president may have also seriously violated the Constitution in terms of Section 96 (2) (b) by acting in a way that is inconsistent with his oath of office and exposing himself to any situation involving the risk of a conflict between his official responsibilities and private interests of the constitution.
According to its findings, the panel also found that the president may have committed serious misconduct and violated the Prevention and Combating of Corrupt Activities Act, and that he may have acted inconsistently with his oath of office and exposed himself to a conflict of interest.
The report has since sparked outrage, with opposition parties such as ATM, EFF, DA, UDM, and ActionSA calling for Ramaphosa to step down, with most of the country’s opposition parties saying all of these transgressions are enough to warrant an impeachment process against him.
ActionSA leader Herman Mashaba, in a statement said Ramaphosa ought to resign following the independent panel’s report.
"ActionSA notes Parliament’s Section 89 report into the Phala Phala saga, in which it finds that indeed President Cyril Ramaphosa has a serious case for which to answer.
"As such, Mr Ramaphosa must resign or face impeachment without further delay. South Africa cannot afford more years of another president with criminal charges to answer for at a time when our country needs ethical leadership," Mashaba said.
The DA called the findings against the president a historical moment for South Africa and its democracy, adding that the panel made some serious findings against the president, chief among them being that he may have violated the constitution.
"These are grounds for impeachment proceedings in parliament. This is exactly why our focus must now be on the parliamentary process.
"While a vote on whether to institute impeachment proceedings against the president requires a 50% majority, we do hope that the ANC in Parliament will put party interests aside and abide by the constitutional obligation we all have," DA chief whip Siviwe Gwarube said in a statement.
However, given the widespread calls for him to step down, the president, in a statement issued by his office, has asked for time to study the report before taking any action.
The president’s spokesperson, Vincent Magwenya, said the president appreciates that, according to the rules of the National Assembly, the NA needs to consider the report and determine the most appropriate way forward.
He added that the Section 89 process has presented an unprecedented and extraordinary moment for South Africa’s constitutional democracy, adding that this would require careful reading and appropriate consideration in the interest of the stability of the government and that of the country.
"President Ramaphosa reiterates the statement he made in his submission to the independent panel, and the president is giving consideration to the report, and an announcement will be made in due course," Magwenya said.
However, the president still maintains that he did not violate the constitution or his oath of office.
"I have endeavoured, throughout my tenure as President, not only to abide by my oath but to set an example of respect for the Constitution, for its institutions, for due process, and for the law. I categorically deny that I have violated this oath in any way, and I similarly deny that I am guilty of any of the allegations made against me," Ramaphosa is quoted as saying.
The Star