South Africa’s Constitutional Court Set to Hear Petition Against President Ramaphosa
In a significant development, South Africa’s Constitutional Court has announced that it will hear a petition filed by two opposition parties to revive impeachment proceedings against President Cyril Ramaphosa over a scandal involving over $500,000 in cash that was hidden in a sofa at his ranch and then stolen.
The scandal, which erupted in June 2022, threatened to destabilize Ramaphosa’s leadership. It was revealed that at least $580,000 in US banknotes, hidden in a sofa at his Phala Phala farm, had been stolen more than two years earlier and kept secret. Ramaphosa has been accused by opposition parties of tax evasion, money laundering, and breaching foreign exchange laws, charges he has denied.
The two opposition parties, the Economic Freedom Fighters and the Movement for the Transformation of Africa, have argued that parliament has failed to properly fulfill its constitutional role of holding the president accountable. They have filed papers with the country’s highest court, citing the scandal as evidence of Ramaphosa’s alleged wrongdoing.
Ramaphosa’s party, the African National Congress (ANC), had blocked an impeachment vote in 2022, despite an independent report raising questions about his conduct and recommending a full investigation. The ANC has since been joined by nine other parties in a broad coalition to govern South Africa, calming some of the criticism leveled at Ramaphosa over the scandal.
However, the court’s decision to hear the petition has reignited controversy around the scandal. Ramaphosa has been cleared by the Reserve Bank and a state watchdog, but some opposition parties have questioned these decisions. The President, 71, was re-elected for a second term in June, but only with the help of opposition MPs, as the ANC lost its parliamentary majority for the first time since South Africa became a democracy in 1994, at the end of apartheid.
The Constitutional Court’s decision to hear the petition is a significant development in the ongoing saga, which has sparked widespread debate about accountability and transparency in South African politics. The outcome of the court’s hearing will be closely watched by both domestic and international audiences.
