Ramaphosa blames the protection unit head in his report on Phala Phala

MPs will have access to the report on Wednesday evening, according to Mapisa-Nqakula.

The report of Parliament’s Section 89 independent panel into the theft of foreign currency at President Cyril Ramaphosa’s Phala Phala farm was handed over to National Assembly Speaker Nosiviwe Mapisa-Nqakula on Wednesday morning.

The panel, led by former Chief Justice Sandile Ngcobo, was tasked with determining whether the president committed an impeachable offence in connection with the February 2020 burglary at his Phala Phala game farm in Limpopo.

During a ceremony in Parliament in Cape Town, Justice Ngcobo presented the report to Mapisa-Nqakula.

“The report consists of three volumes. The first volume is the report itself.

“Volume two and three is the record of the proceedings which contain every single document on which we relied in order to prepare this report,” he said.

Mapisa-Nqakula said MPs would have access to the report on Wednesday evening, ahead of a special National Assembly session on the report on December 6.

“The report will be communicated to members of Parliament through the next publication of the announcements, tablings and committee reports tonight,” said Mapisa-Nqakula.

Ngcobo thanked the panel’s members, including Judge Thokozile Masipa and advocate Mahlape Sello, as well as the various political parties that contributed to the report.

“There has been a lot of anxiety, understandably so, from the people of South Africa.

“I’d to thank them for their patience and for allowing us the necessary space to do our work without any interruption,” he said.

The former chief justice said the process of putting together the report “taxed the patience” of the panel’s families to the “ultimate minute that human endurance could ever tolerate”.

Ngcobo emphasised that the task of the panel was to determine whether Ramaphosa had a case to answer regarding the Phala Phala allegations.

He stated that their job was not to convict the president or call witnesses.

“Our job was to interrogate the information that members of assemble saw fit to present to us. That’s what the rules made by the National Assembly told and required us to do. We could not go beyond that.

“It’s not in my blood to disregard the law. I live by the law and that’s what I have to do.”

ATM motion for Section 89 inquiry

The three-member panel was formed after Mapisa-Nqakula agreed to the African Transformation Movement’s (ATM) request for a Section 89 inquiry into Ramaphosa.

The ATM motion was based on former spy chief Arthur Fraser’s criminal complaint against the president in June for money laundering, kidnapping, and corruption.

Fraser claimed that Ramaphosa was involved in an elaborate cover-up of the crime after criminals broke into his property and stole millions of dollars in cash, allegedly in collusion with his domestic worker.

He also claimed that the suspects were kidnapped, interrogated, and bribed to remain silent.

Ramaphosa confirmed the burglary at his farm but denied any wrongdoing.

If the panel advises Parliament that Ramaphosa has a case to answer, the recommendation will be put to a vote in the National Assembly on Tuesday, according to reports.

If a majority is obtained during the vote, a Section 89 impeachment committee will be formed to investigate the president’s fitness for office.

If the committee also recommends Ramaphosa’s removal, this could lead to his impeachment.

During the impeachment vote in the House, a two-thirds majority will be required.

According to reports, Ramaphosa has blamed the theft at his Phala Phala farm on the head of his VIP protection unit, Maj-Gen Wally Rhoode.

The president claimed in his submission to the Section 89 panel, which was seen by the publication, that he reported the housebreaking and theft to Rhoode because he was responsible for ensuring his safety and security.

He said he expected Rhoode to “do all that is necessary and take any other steps required in response to the information I had shared with him”.