Africa-Press – South-Africa. Court documents reveal that South African President Cyril Ramaphosa has filed an urgent request to the court in an attempt to stop parliamentary impeachment proceedings aimed at investigating allegations related to the “Farmgate” scandal.
Ramaphosa wants the High Court to first rule on a separate request he submitted to annul the findings of an independent committee regarding misconduct in this scandal, in which large sums of cash were stolen from a couch on his farm in 2020.
The president stated that $580,000 was stolen, claiming it was proceeds from the sale of buffaloes. However, this incident raised questions about why the money was hidden in furniture and whether he disclosed it. Ramaphosa has denied any wrongdoing.
The Constitutional Court of South Africa revived the impeachment proceedings against President Ramaphosa last month after ruling that the parliamentary vote held in 2022 to halt these proceedings was invalid.
The High Court is set to hear his case against the findings of the misconduct investigation from September 2 to 4. Ramaphosa, who is 73 years old, has been in office since 2018, and his second presidential term is scheduled to end in 2029. The “Farmgate” scandal has been a significant embarrassment for him, as he came to power pledging to combat corruption and improve the image of his party, the African National Congress. However, political analysts expect him to remain in office if impeachment proceedings are put to a vote in Parliament.
