South Africa court ruling revives pressure on Ramaphosa over $580,000 cash scandal

Cyril Ramaphosa, South Africa’s president is facing renewed political pressure after the country’s Constitutional Court ruled that parliament acted unlawfully when it blocked attempts to begin impeachment proceedings against him over the Phala Phala cash scandal.

The judgement, delivered on Friday, reopened one of the most damaging controversies of Ramaphosa’s presidency and raised the possibility of a fresh impeachment vote in parliament.

Read also: African countries warn citizens of xenophobic attacks in South Africa – Reuters

Malema, the Opposition leader l reacted swiftly, calling on the president to resign and focus on defending himself against the revived process.

“You cannot serve the two,” Malema told reporters outside the court in Johannesburg. “One is going to suffer.

The case centres on the theft of about $580,000 allegedly stolen from Ramaphosa’s Phala Phala game farm in Limpopo province in 2020. The cash, reportedly hidden inside a sofa, triggered allegations that the president failed to properly declare or account for the money.

Ramaphosa has consistently denied wrongdoing, insisting the money came from the sale of buffaloes at the farm.
In 2022, an independent parliamentary panel concluded there was evidence suggesting the president may have violated his oath of office and could have a case to answer. But lawmakers voted against establishing an impeachment committee after members of the ruling African National Congress used their parliamentary majority to block the move.

Read also: Ramaphosa thanks Putin as 17 lured South Africans return from Russia-Ukraine war

The latest ruling found that parliament had failed to properly carry out its constitutional responsibilities in handling the matter.

The decision comes at a politically delicate moment for Ramaphosa. The ANC no longer commands an outright majority after the 2024 general election and now governs through a coalition arrangement, making parliament more unpredictable than during the earlier vote.

In a statement issued, according to BBC, after the judgement, Ramaphosa’s office said the president respected the ruling and remained committed to the constitution and the rule of law.

“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 statement said.

Read also:Xenophobia: NLC writes South African counterparts to halt attacks

The ANC also defended the judgement, saying it reflected the strength and independence of South Africa’s democratic institutions.

Malema’s Economic Freedom Fighters party, alongside the African Transformation Movement, brought the case before the Constitutional Court after parliament rejected impeachment proceedings four years ago.

The EFF has already written to National Assembly speaker Thoko Didiza demanding urgent steps to implement the ruling and clarify the next stage of the impeachment process.

Meanwhile, Geordin Hill-Lewis of the Democratic Alliance said lawmakers now had a duty to handle the matter “properly, rationally, fairly and constitutionally”.

The Phala Phala affair has cast a long shadow over Ramaphosa’s anti corruption image and reform agenda. South African law requires foreign currency to be declared and deposited with authorised financial institutions within a specified period, intensifying scrutiny over why large amounts of cash were allegedly stored at the farm.

Three suspects are currently standing trial over the burglary itself, but the political fallout continues to threaten Ramaphosa’s standing both within the ANC and across the country’s increasingly fractured political landscape.