Retired Chief Justice Sandile Ngcobo presents the Section 89 Panel report to then Speaker of the National Assembly Nosiviwe Mapisa-Nqakula in Cape Town on November 30, 2022. President Cyril Ramaphosa’s decision to revisit the judicial review of the Section 89 Independent Panel report is a masterclass in deception and obfuscation, says the writer.
Prof. Sipho Seepe
President Cyril Ramaphosa’s decision to take the Section 89 Independent Panel Report on Phala Phala for judicial review is a cynical, self-serving manoeuvre.
It is not a genuine attempt to clear his name but a calculated response to the Constitutional Court’s recent judgment, which dismantled his efforts to bury the scandal. Ramaphosa is betting on two outcomes: that the review will stymie the Impeachment Committee’s work and that prolonged litigation will shield him from accountability for years.
Three years ago, Ramaphosa approached the Constitutional Court seeking direct access to review the Independent Panel’s report, which found prima facie evidence that he may have committed serious violations of the Constitution and anti-corruption laws. Luthuli House then used the application as a pretext to instruct ANC MPs to reject the report in the National Assembly. They obliged with enthusiasm.
