Africa-Press – South-Africa. The EFF is heading to the Constitutional Court to challenge the National Assembly’s decision not to institute impeachment proceedings against President Cyril Ramaphosa.
The party will also ask the court to allow it to oppose Ramaphosa’s application to review and set aside the report of the independent panel, which found that he had a prima facie case to answer.
In late November, the panel – which Parliament appointed – released the report, which contained a recommendation that the National Assembly should institute the impeachment proceedings Ramaphosa.
At first Ramaphosa considered resigning, but he decided to fight back and ask the Constitutional Court to review the report instead.
The pending court challenge, however, did not prevent the National Assembly from proceeding with a vote on whether or not impeachment proceedings should be instituted against Ramaphosa. With party discipline enforced, the ANC ensured that the vote went against impeachment.
In his application to the Constitutional Court, Ramaphosa accused the panel of relying on the “say-so” of former spy boss Arthur Fraser in determining the impeachment case against him. Ramaphosa insisted that he did nothing wrong in relation to a theft at his Limpopo game farm, Phala Phala.
The theft remained secret until Fraser laid charges in connection with it with the police, spawning a host of investigations, including the parliamentary Section 89 process.
As respondents, Ramaphosa only cited the three members of the panel, the former chief justice, Sandile Ngcobo; retired judge Thokozile Masipa; advocate Mahlape Sello, SC; Speaker Nosiviwe Mapisa-Nqakula and ATM leader Vuyolwethu Zungula, who brought the Section 89 motion.
But, in papers filed on 22 December, EFF deputy leader Floyd Shivambu argued that the party had a material interest because it was duty-bound to hold Ramaphosa to account, and that he still had many questions to answer on the Phala Phala saga.
In another application, which was filed this week, the EFF asked the apex court to review and set aside Mapisa-Nqakula’s decision to have a vote on the report, to have it done by open ballot, and to declare it unconstitutional and invalid. They want the Section 89 process to start afresh.
Shivambu stated that he made the application with urgency and asked the court to hear it with Ramaphosa’s application.
In December, the ATM also approached the Western Cape High Court in a bid to overturn the National Assembly’s decision.
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