Ramaphosa opens up about Phala Phala scandal

Cyril Ramaphosa, the president of the ANC, briefed the ANC national executive committee on the Phala Phala issue on Friday, but it did not stop his opponents from urging him to resign from his position.

NEC members who were present at the meeting on Friday informed TimesLIVE that the president willingly brought up the subject during his opening speech. They asserted that he claimed the cash taken from his Phala Phala property was the gain of an honest business deal.

According to insiders, Ramaphosa assured them that he had informed the appropriate authorities of every facet of the firm.
Senior party leaders, who preferred to remain anonymous, claimed that Ramaphosa even went so far as to take them into his confidence on his submission to the parliamentary panel looking into whether he has a case to answer for on the matter.

Party officials viewed this as a deliberate attempt to “disarm” his opponents who had attended the conference to demand his dismissal.

According to a report from TimesLIVE on Friday, the party’s integrity commission had urged Ramaphosa to consult with the NEC about the situation since it was continuing to damage the party’s reputation.

“In my opinion, by presenting his defense to the legislature, he disarmed a lot of people. The issue is that the longer they put off providing a public justification, the more harm was done. An NEC member stated, “I believe he ought to have provided the public with this explanation sooner.

Ramaphosa was confident when he talked, I believe they are certain that everything Fraser stated was hearsay. However, it is obvious that he is in charge of us. “But it’s his money, what law did he break?” is now the question. Which statute?

Another ANC leader claimed that during Ramaphosa’s political review, the president was forthright in admitting that he was not present when a businessman visited his property to buy a buffalo and that he was unable to know that people on the farm had stashed the money in sofas and mattresses.

“The president has finally gained our trust. The law enforcement organization is still in charge of determining the truth, though. The NEC is unable to determine the truth. We are unable to question him. But now that the case is in court, they are powerless to take any action, but at least he informed us. This explanation should have occurred a long time ago.

Several NEC members, however, rejected Ramaphosa’s justification and demanded that he leave the meeting. They also pressed him to explain why, if the company was legitimate, there was a need to conceal the money in the mattress.

Ramaphosa should vacate his role as president of the nation and the ANC, according to Dlamini-Zuma, S’dumo Dlamini, Tony Yengeni, and Tandi Mahambehlala.

After giving a report, he claims to have been selling these buffaloes for many years. He then claims to have declared, albeit he was unable to explain why he keeps his money in the mattress. They then pursued him for that. The conversation then came to an end since it was getting too hot. Another NEC member chimed in, “They said we’ll continue tomorrow.

Ramaphosa was requested to leave the NEC because his continuing presence as party leader was detrimental to the ANC, according to many NEC members who talked with TimesLIVE after the meeting.
“Phala Phala has seriously damaged the ANC’s reputation and integrity. Second, he has publicly made a few admissions about what transpired,” the NEC member continued.

Third, the ANC as a whole is being questioned in the public, not just him, and for those reasons alone, he should step down like everyone else before him.
Investigations into the Phala Phala incident would obstruct the work of agencies that should uncover the facts of what occurred, according to another argument made at the conference by those who not only want the president to resign but also are opposed to his being given a second term.

The perception that he is interfering with the probe will persist as long as he remains there, which is the other problem. No matter if they work for the Reserve Bank or the Sars, the people he has appointed will feel obligated to defend him, the NEC member continued.

However, Ramaphosa’s critics on Friday also raised the issue of his 2017 presidential campaign’s locked campaign finances.

The NEC member who requested anonymity stated that sealed financial statements are another factor in the call for Ramaphosa to step down.
The insider stated, “So, here is a man leading the ANC who has major and very serious allegations surrounding him. Not only does he want a second term, but we are telling him you must leave now, forget about a second term.”

Ramaphosa received no defense from the assault, according to a different NEC member who spoke with TimesLIVE after the meeting.

“None of his allies spoke forward to support him; they were preoccupied with Eskom and economic difficulties. However, no one spoke up to demand a second term for the president. This thing’s misnomer is becoming more and more obvious, the source said.

However, according to two NEC members, Ramaphosa defended himself and insisted that he was innocent of all charges.

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