The charge relates to a 2020 break-in, where in excess of $4 million (more than R61m) concealed at Ramaphosa’s Phala Phala farm in Waterberg, Limpopo, was stolen by four Namibian nationals and one South African, Fraser said in a scathing affidavit. (Read More Here).
Pressure is mounting on Ramaphosa to disclose the full details of the incident which he claimed had only been reported to the head of his security and not the police.
It still remains unclear if the foreign currency was declared with the South African Revenue Services and the Reserve Bank.
Parliament confirmed the matter is currently with its legal department. On Wednesday Public Protector advocate Busisiwe Mkhwebane confirmed receipt of a complaint lodged in terms of the Executive Members’ Ethics Act No. 82 of 1998 (EMEA) against Ramaphosa for allegedly breaching the Executive Code of Ethics.
“The complaint, which relates to President Ramaphosa’s alleged conduct in respect of allegations of criminal activities at one of his properties, was received last Friday from Mr Vuyo Zungula, MP, President of the African Transformation Movement (ATM). The ATM is a political party represented in Parliament.
“Due to the silence of the EMEA when it comes to the appropriate recipient of the report in case the complaint is against the president, the public protector has previously had to improvise and send it to the Speaker of the National Assembly.
“The investigation concerning Zungula’s complaint has commenced, with allegation letters already written to sources of information, including Ramaphosa,” said Mkhwebane.
President Cyril Ramaphosa says he will not interfere with the investigation into the robbery at his Phala Phala farm in 2020.
“We want the police to investigate whatever crime, whoever it is against, without any fear, without favour and on an impartial basis,” said Ramaphosa on Friday.
Briefing the media after replying to his presidency budget vote in parliament, Ramaphosa said if he were to step aside as the head of state on that account, “then it basically means that I am confirming that I interfere in the investigative processes. Which I must say, I don’t.”
He said were he to interfere, he would be undermining the work of law enforcement officers.
“It would be demeaning to those officials who work in those structures because it would mean that they are not able to do their work on an independent basis, and it actually just destroys their own confidence because they will forever be fearing that they may not follow things up properly because so and so is involved.”
When asked whether he was placing the ANC ahead of his citizens by opting to answer to the integrity commission before coming clean to South Africans, he said: “I don’t think that one should necessarily see it that way.
“One should see it in a way that the ANC, which is the party that deployed me and the work that I do, has a formal structure, which in terms of the conference which has given me the marching orders in terms of the work that I do, I have to go and explain myself to. I do not think that one should think of it as an either/or type of situation.
“The one is not more important that the other. It is just that there is a formalised process that I need to follow and in time, all of that will be put forward,” he added.
“I am a process person, the process must unfold. What I will say is that if I were to be charged, yes, the processes in the governing party have to unfold in the ANC. As you well know I have offered to go myself on a voluntary basis to the integrity commission and I will be seeing them on a date that is yet to be set.”
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