ANC national chairperson Gwede Mantashe says President Cyril Ramaphosa will not resign despite mounting political pressure following the Constitutional Court ruling that revived impeachment proceedings linked to the Phala Phala scandal.
Image: Phando Jikelo/ParliamentRSA/Supplied
ANC national chairperson Gwede Mantashe has confirmed that President Cyril Ramaphosa is not going anywhere, as Ramaphosa is expected to address the nation at 8pm on the Phala Phala scandal.
The remarks follow a judgment by the Constitutional Court of South Africa in a case brought by the Economic Freedom Fighters challenging the National Assembly’s decision on Section 89 proceedings against him.
ANC secretary-general Fikile Mbalula has called an urgent ANC NEC meeting on Monday following the Constitutional Court judgment on Ramaphosa and the Phala Phala scandal.
Commenting on the meeting, Mantashe said Ramaphosa was prepared to follow all due processes.
“He is relaxed. He is calm. He is ready to go through a process. He will not take shortcuts that everybody expects of him, to just resign and walk away.
“We said that (reffering to resigning) is not working. He is allowing the process to take its course.
“And he will do many things to ensure that he acts within the framework of the process,” Mantashe told broadcaster Newzroom Afrika.
Earlier, IOL News reported that sources said the meeting would focus on the court ruling, Parliament’s next steps, and growing calls for Ramaphosa to resign or face impeachment.
“This could not wait because everyone is calling for the president to be impeached or resign,” a senior ANC source said.
“Parliament now has to act after the ruling.”
Another source admitted the judgment could seriously damage the ANC.
“This might be a blow for us as the ANC if Ramaphosa is removed, but we have to deal with it because it could weaken the organisation even further,” the source said.
When asked whether the ANC was considering possible new leadership, the source responded: “Only time will tell.”
Meanwhile, Mantashe said that, while he did not know what Ramaphosa would say in his address, the president had every right to address the nation on the Phala Phala process.
He added that the ANC was surprised by what it described as the opposition’s “desperation” to push for a vote of no confidence against Ramaphosa.
This comes after the MK Party and the African Transformation Movement filed motions of no confidence against Ramaphosa over the weekend following the judgment.
National Assembly Speaker Thoko Didiza has since confirmed that Parliament would establish an impeachment committee to deal with the Phala Phala matter.
“The processes directed by the court must now proceed in accordance with the Constitution and the Rules of the National Assembly,” Didiza said.
The Constitutional Court also struck down Rule 129I, the parliamentary rule governing the initial handling of impeachment proceedings under Section 89 of the Constitution.
Parliament is now expected to amend its rules and continue with the impeachment process linked to the Phala Phala scandal.
On Friday, the Constitutional Court overturned a parliamentary vote that blocked the opening of impeachment proceedings against Ramaphosa over the alleged US$4 million cash-heist scandal.
Ramaphosa has been accused of concealing from police and tax authorities a 2020 break-in during which large sums of foreign currency were allegedly stolen from furniture at his Phala Phala farm in Limpopo.
An independent panel later found that he “may have committed” serious violations and misconduct.
However, Parliament, then controlled by the ANC, voted in 2022 against opening impeachment proceedings that could have forced him from office.
“It is declared that the vote of the National Assembly taken on 13 December 2022 is inconsistent with the Constitution, invalid, and it is set aside,” Chief Justice Mandisa Maya said.
The court ordered that the independent panel’s report be referred to an impeachment committee.
The ruling followed a complaint lodged by the EFF.
Responding to the judgment, The Presidency of South Africa said it had “noted the judgment” and that Ramaphosa respected the ruling.
“President Ramaphosa maintains that no person is above the law and that any allegations should be subjected to due process without fear, favour or prejudice,” the Presidency said in a statement.
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