South African President Cyril Ramaphosa has gone to court to challenge a report that could lead to impeachment talks against him again. Parliament ordered the report to investigate claims related to the theft of money from his private farm. In 2022, an independent panel said President Ramaphosa may have committed serious misconduct.
The case was connected to the theft of a large amount of cash that was hidden inside a sofa at his Phala Phala farm. Ramaphosa denied doing anything wrong. Earlier this month, South Africa’s Constitutional Court ruled that parliament acted against the constitution four years ago. Lawmakers voted against initiating an impeachment inquiry after the panel released its report at that time. Back then, Ramaphosa’s African National Congress (ANC) party had a majority in parliament. But after the 2024 general election, the ANC lost its majority and had to govern with other parties in a coalition government.
In court papers filed on Tuesday at the High Court in Cape Town, Ramaphosa said the independent panel misunderstood its role and wrongly judged the information given to it. He also said the panel misunderstood the four charges made against him. The charges included claims that he violated the constitution and committed serious misconduct. Ramaphosa said he was not making the court challenge lightly.
He argued that the report should be cancelled, which would also stop the impeachment process. Parliament’s Speaker has already created a 31-member impeachment committee. The group includes MPs from 16 political parties, including nine members from the ANC. The committee will decide if there are enough reasons to begin impeachment proceedings against the president.
The scandal became known as “Farmgate” in local media after about $580,000 was reportedly stolen from Ramaphosa’s farm in Limpopo province in 2020. South Africa has strict rules on foreign currency. The law says such money must be deposited in a bank within 30 days. Ramaphosa said the cash came from the legal sale of buffaloes in his farming business.
