Durban — The EFF and ActionSA have lambasted President Cyril Ramaphosa for “taking Parliament to court” instead of resigning, claiming that this shows he has no regard for the laws of the land and the Constitution.
On Monday afternoon, the president filed papers in the Constitutional Court to challenge the damning findings against him by the Section 89 Panel.
The news came when the opposition had geared up to ensure the report would be adopted on Tuesday, which was the day set aside for tabling and debating it in Parliament.
Later on Monday evening at the meeting of the Speaker with the parties’ whips, the ANC proposed the removal of the item and suggested it be postponed to next week so the members should be physically in Parliament, which was agreed.
In a statement by the EFF on Tuesday, the party lashed out at the president and said taking the Parliament report to court was equal to taking Parliament itself to court.
“The Economic Freedom Fighters is disgusted and appalled by the decision of the rogue President of South Africa Cyril Ramaphosa, to take Parliament to court in order to review the findings of the Section 89 Independent Panel.
“The decision to take his own Parliament to court in order to prevent it from exercising its duty of oversight and accountability, is a confirmation of Ramaphosa’s guilt and arrogance in the face of damning findings of his violation of the Constitution of South Africa.”
The party said that if the president was truly innocent, he would not be threatened by a process to examine whether he has committed crimes on his Phala Phala farm because it is this very impeachment process that will investigate the matter and exonerate him if he is innocent.
The EFF said the question all South Africans should ask themselves was why the president was reluctant to allow an open and transparent process to proceed, and allow Parliament to conduct its work and practice its duties as enshrined in the Constitution.
It further asked why the president and the ANC were so determined to stall the progress of investigating the crimes which happened at and are related to the Phala Phala farm.
“The money laundering president has confirmed that he has no regard for the Constitution and will fight tooth and nail to prevent transparency and accountability. His actions are those of a guilty man who has no respect for the people of South Africa and will go to great lengths to cover up his criminality,” read the EFF statement.
The party also expressed doubt that the court would treat the matter fairly and independently under Chief Justice Raymond Zondo, whom it referred to as the president’s ally and confidante in the Constitutional Court, saying the president turned to Zondo to reverse the “credible, sound and concise findings” of the Section 89 Independent Panel.
The EFF further stated the fact that Ramaphosa had not even applied for the review on an urgent basis, shows that his sole interest is to cast doubt over the report and delay its processing by Parliament until he has emerged in the conference of the ANC.
Furthermore, the EFF stated the president also disrespected the political parties in Parliament by not citing them as interested parties in his application.
The party felt that parties that had made submissions to the panel should have been at least cited as interested parties in the papers, adding that it was “a shallow and petty tactic by a gangster who has become accustomed to using the judiciary to hide his corruption”.
ActionSA leader Herman Mashaba also weighed in on the president’s action, saying the best thing he could have done was to resign and go sell his animals which he had demonstrated was his first priority. Speaking in Durban on Tuesday, Mashaba said his party was not surprised by the ANC’s action to instruct its MPs to vote against the adoption of the report, saying he never expected the ANC to vote against corruption.
Mashaba said it was up to people to put pressure on Ramaphosa to resign, and vowed that his party would mobilise civic society to force him out of office.
In his papers, the president asked the court to declare any steps taken by the Parliament pursuant to the report unlawful and invalid. This left questions about whether it was still relevant for the National Assembly to debate the report.
Legal expert advocate Mpumelelo Zikalala said there was nothing stopping Parliament from debating the report and even voting.
ANC stalwart and activist Carl Niehaus said: “I think it is a very wrong decision for the NEC to reject the report. The allegations against Ramaphosa are very serious and must be taken as such.
“The panel that worked on the report is not a court of law, so if Ramaphosa wants to clear his name, he must do so in a court of law.
“For Paul Mashatile and Gwede Mantashe to force their way into the NEC was wrong – that it was the decision of the NEC to reject the report, was wrong. That is why Nkosazana Dlamini Zuma, Tony Yengeni, Lindiwe Sisulu, Zweli Mkhize and others are threatening to stage a revolt against their directive.
“That is the situation we are facing around the matter.
“For the NEC and Members of Parliament to be expected to vote openly, will make them afraid to vote with their conscience as it will not be a secret vote anymore. Those who will vote will be publicly exposed, hence they will be afraid of reprisals.
“Reports that Pammy Majodina has told them to make sure that they follow the NEC’s directive are against what our movement stands for. It has been a sad day for the NEC to decide to give Ramaphosa impunity.
“The report is the property of Parliament, hence every member should be voting according to their conscience, and not be compelled to go against their conscience,” he said.
Niehaus said that as concerned ANC members, they were planning a mass protest outside the National Assembly next week, and were requesting all concerned members of society to join them and express their discontent around the Phala Phala scandal.
Political pundit Professor Sipho Seepe said there were two elements around the matter, which were the legal as well as political issues.
“The parliamentary appointed panel was expected to come up with a report with evidence of whether the president violated the law and it was Parliament that had made that decision.
“The decision by the NEC to reject the report is their right, as it is apparent they don’t want to be seen as turning against their leader.
“Those who say Ramaphosa wanted to resign but was asked by the ANC NEC not to, is nothing but fallacy,” Seepe said, stressing that voting around the report should be made secret so that people can vote according to their conscience freely, but what this has become is interest versus conscience.
It is wrong, whether secret ballot or not, Seepe said.
Daily News