Intense lobbying was under way on the eve of Monday’s inaugural meeting of the parliamentary impeachment committee into President Cyril Ramaphosa’s handling of the Phala Phala matter.ANC insiders have told Business Day that its parliamentary caucus will meet on Monday morning to decide on their nominee for chair of the committee. It is an influential position, as it sets the tone for the committee’s trajectory. But the ANC has only nine out of 31 representatives on the committee. Three ANC MPs told Business Day that they would lobby hard for Dorris Mpapane, who is the chair of parliament’s portfolio committee on the presidency, to lead the process. But no opposition party, including the DA, MK and EFF, is expected to support Mpapane. DA insiders say they would not nominate a DA candidate and they would be happy with Build One South Africa leader Mmusi Maimane leading and adjudicating the impeachment process’s work. “We won’t support a candidate from the MK or EFF,” a DA MP said. Other opposition parties are racing to agree on a single candidate as the ANC banks on divisions among its rivals to retain influence over the high-stakes process.The 31-member committee is expected to meet on Monday to elect its chair, a position that could shape the direction, credibility and tempo of the inquiry into the Phala Phala matter.Business Day has been told that opposition parties were due to meet on Sunday night as lobbying intensified over who should be put forward for the position. A decision was likely to be made late on Sunday night, possibly close to midnight, before a final opposition meeting at 11am on Monday, ahead of the committee vote.While the ANC does not command a majority on the committee, party insiders believe its path to the chair remains open if opposition parties fail to unite behind one candidate.If most opposition parties come together to back one candidate, the ANC is unlikely to have the numbers to secure the post. If they do not, the vote could split in a way that benefits the governing party.Insiders said the talks are “touch and go”, with parties trying to avoid alienating one another as they work to secure the 16 votes needed to win the chair outright.Final pushOne source said there will be a final push for consensus before the committee sits, adding that opposition parties are confident they will reach agreement. “There will definitely be sufficient consensus,” the source said.The ANC’s chief whip, Mdumiseni Ntuli, is expected to communicate the party’s candidate before the committee meets.The Patriotic Alliance is understood to be preparing to vote with the ANC, giving the governing party some comfort in what is expected to be a tightly contested election. Business Day also understands that the IFP and Al Jama-ah are likely to vote with the ANC.The ANC is said to be calculating that opposition parties’ internal disagreements could prevent them from consolidating around one nominee.Opposition parties have argued that the chair should not come from the ANC because the inquiry concerns Ramaphosa, the ANC president and head of state. They argue that the ANC is materially invested in the outcome and that its control of the committee would undermine public confidence in the process.Maimane confirmed to Business Day that he had been lobbied by some opposition parties to make himself available for the position. “It must be chaired by someone from the opposition. People have approached me, and I said I would be available,” Maimane said.Opposition parties have argued that the chair should not come from the ANC because the inquiry concerns Ramaphosa, the ANC president and head of state.But Maimane’s possible candidacy has also caused unease among some opposition MPs. One source said some parties are concerned about the way Maimane had handled the lobbying process, claiming he had been lobbying internally rather than allowing parties to first settle on a collective position.“There are people who are not comfortable with the way he has operated,” said the source.Maimane is not the only opposition figure under discussion. Rise Mzansi chief whip Makashule Gana is another name that has been mentioned as a possible chair. Speaking to Business Day, Gana said Rise Mzansi will participate fully in the process and vote for the candidate it believes is best placed to lead the committee.MPs inside the progressive caucus told Business Day they are actively lobbying for UDM deputy president and MP Nqabayomzi Kwankwa to chair the committee. The push for Kwankwa has created its own tensions because the UDM is part of the government of national unity (GNU), even though it has repeatedly sought to present itself as an independent voice within that arrangement.That has complicated the opposition’s argument that no GNU party should chair a committee probing Ramaphosa.Several opposition parties have argued that both the ANC and DA should avoid the position because of the GNU’s political stake in Ramaphosa’s survival. The same argument is now being applied by some opposition MPs to Kwankwa.The DA, which has five members on the committee, is understood to have little appetite for the post because it does not want to compromise its ability to independently assess the committee’s work. The contest has exposed the difficulty facing opposition parties. They broadly agree that the ANC should not chair the committee, but they have not yet agreed on who should.At least four opposition MPs are understood to be interested in, or open to, the position. The election will be decided by committee members, with the candidate who secures the most votes expected to become chair.The chair will play a crucial role in steering the committee’s proceedings, managing evidence, handling procedural disputes, and ensuring that the process can withstand political and legal scrutiny.The committee was established after the Constitutional Court revived the Phala Phala impeachment process, which stems from the theft of foreign currency from Ramaphosa’s Limpopo farm in 2020, and the alleged attempt to cover it up.Ramaphosa has denied wrongdoing and has approached the courts to challenge the independent panel report that found he may have a case to answer.The first test for the committee will now be internal: whether the opposition can use its majority to take control of the chair or whether the ANC can survive the vote by exploiting opposition fragmentation.