President Cyril Ramaphosa is weighing his options after the Constitutional Court ruled against him in his application for direct access to the court to challenge the parliamentary report into his conduct.
Ramaphosa’s spokesperson Vincent Magwenya said the president did not believe the judgment of the Constitutional Court was a blow to him.
He said Ramaphosa’s legal team was going back to the drawing board to consider various options on the table and this may include legally challenging the report on section 89.
Former Chief Justice Sandile Ngcobo, Judge Thokozile Masipa and advocate Mahlape Sello had considered the Phala Phala investigation and tabled the report late last year. It made serious findings against Ramaphosa.
Magwenya said the judgment of the Constitutional Court on Wednesday did not deal with the substance of the issues, but procedural issues.
The president was seeking direct access to the highest court in the land to challenge the Phala Phala report.
He said the fact that the court did not rule in favour of the president was not a blow.
“That judgment deals with what I would call a procedural matter with respect to the president seeking direct access to the Constitutional Court. That judgment does not pronounce on the merits of the case. That judgment says there is no case for the Constitutional Court to be petitioned directly. We have to put that into context and understand it. I heard some of your colleagues say it’s a blow to the president, it’s not a blow to the president. What will happen now, the legal team will convene and map the way forward and consider the options. It’s not necessarily a blow, it's not a judgment on the substance and merits of the case,” said Magwenya.
He added that the judgment was looking at whether Ramaphosa can petition the court directly.
He said in their view Ramaphosa was correct to go directly to the Constitutional Court to challenge the section 89 report.
This was because the report was dealing with the conduct of the president and the court was the right platform to hear the application, he said.
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