Ramaphosa grilled on farm dollars, maintains innocence

President Cyril Ramaphosa has dismissed accusations that he abused his power by reporting the burglary at his Phala Phala game farm to the head of the presidential protection unit instead of a police station.

During a question-andanswer session in parliament on Thursday, Ramaphosa said he is surrounded by police officials and when he informed the head of the presidential protection unit, Wally Rhoode, he was simply informing a police official.

“I do not believe I abused my power because I am surrounded by police officials and when I informed the general, I was informing a police official. Even at the time on the farm, my manager interacted with police officials who were involved with the whole process. So, I want to dispute the argument that I abused my power. I am not the type of person to abuse my position or my power.”

Ramaphosa is facing potentially damaging allegations levelled against him by Arthur

Fraser, the former State Security Agency head, who is accusing him of money laundering, kidnapping and corruption related to the theft of $4m from his game farm in Limpopo.

The president, who has not been charged with any crime, has confirmed that there was a burglary at the farm, but denied he broke the law amid suggestions that he may have done so in not immediately handing over his dollars to an authorised dealer, such as a bank.

Fraser, whose political motives have featured in the debate about the scandal as he is said to be an ally of former president Jacob Zuma and the so-called radical economic transformation faction, also accuses Ramaphosa of having unlawfully instructed Rhoode to probe the matter.

The president is alleged to have paid suspects, including his domestic workers, up to R150,000 each in hush money, to ensure they do not reveal that they were kidnapped and interrogated.

The Phala Phala controversy has rattled Ramaphosa’s presidency and put into sharp focus his commitment to transparency and the fight against corruption, leaving him vulnerable ahead of the party’s internal leadership contest in December.

Ramaphosa was also asked why he was at the forefront of the issue when he had supposedly undertaken to surrender his business interests to a blind trust when he took office.

“I have declared my farming activities, [I have a] great passion for cattle farming and so on ... declared firstly here in parliament and thereafter to the secretary of cabinet ... as part of that some properties that I own personally have also been disclosed

… initially the intention was to set up a blind trust, but I did then say I do not intend to be in any other form of business other than the agricultural sector, which I have declared. So that is why in the end, no such trust was formed,” Ramaphosa said.

INVESTIGATION

This week, the ANC used its majority in parliament to block a motion brought by the DA, which called for the establishment of an ad hoc committee to investigate the Phala Phala scandal. All opposition parties in the house, except GOOD, backed the DA motion. The ANC argued that parliament should not deal with the matter yet as law enforcement agencies are already investigating, a similar argument that the party used in 2016 to stymie a proposed ad hoc committee to look into state capture. The ANC also argued that a process is in place to establish whether Ramaphosa has a case to answer.

After the scandal broke, opposition party the ATM tabled a motion requesting the house to initiate an inquiry into Ramaphosa’s removal from office as provided for by section 89 of the constitution. Parliament subsequently announced that the National Assembly speaker referred the proposed section 89 motion to an independent panel to decide whether sufficient evidence exists to show Ramaphosa committed any of the violations specified in the motion.