President Cyril Ramaphosa has vowed not to resign and stressed that he did nothing wrong following the Constitutional Court judgment into allegations relating to the theft at his Phala Phala farm in February 2020.
Ramaphosa addressed the nation on Monday night in response to Friday’s Constitutional Court judgment, which found that Parliament’s impeachment vote on the matter was invalid and unconstitutional.
The case was brought by the Economic Freedom Fighters (EFF) and the African Transformation Movement (ATM), who argued that Parliament violated its own rules when it failed to appoint a committee to investigate the recommendations of the independent panel. The panel had found that Ramaphosa had a prima facie case to answer regarding the matter.
Ramaphosa said that despite calls for him to step down, he would not do so and would instead complete his term of office.
“I therefore respectfully want to make it clear that I will not resign.
To do so would be to pre-empt a process defined by the Constitution.
To do so would be to give credence to a panel report that, unfortunately, has grave flaws.
To do so would be to abdicate the responsibility that I assumed when I became President of the Republic.
To resign now would be to give in to those who seek to reverse the renewal of our society, the rebuilding of our institutions, and the prosecution of corruption,” said Ramaphosa.
He highlighted that he is seeking a judicial review of the independent panel’s report, adding that it contains serious flaws.
“I do so not out of disrespect for Parliament or its processes, but to affirm the need for such findings to be correct in law and in fact, especially where Parliament’s work would be based on and informed by a report I believe is flawed.
I do so out of respect for the Constitutional Court judgment and the principles of judicial review that it reiterates and reinforces.
I do so in fulfilment of the rights, obligations and processes contained in our Constitution,” Ramaphosa remarked.
Despite the independent panel’s findings that there is prima facie evidence suggesting he may have committed serious misconduct and violated the Constitution, Ramaphosa remains adamant that he has committed no wrongdoing.
“Since a criminal complaint was laid against me in June 2022, I have consistently maintained that I have not stolen public money, committed any crime, nor violated my oath of office.
From the beginning, I said that I would cooperate with all institutions mandated to deal with these types of matters.
I have indeed cooperated with all investigations and inquiries into the matter.
And I will continue to cooperate with all institutions that are mandated to deal with these matters,” stressed the President.
