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President Cyril Ramaphosa has launched an urgent court bid to stop parliament proceeding with an impeachment inquiry against him, arguing that the process should be suspended pending the outcome of a separate legal challenge.Court papers filed in the Western Cape High Court on Friday show that Ramaphosa is seeking an urgent interdict against National Assembly speaker Thoko Didiza and the chairperson of parliament’s impeachment committee, Makashule Gana. In the notice of motion, Ramaphosa asks the court to order that the speaker and the committee chairperson be barred from commencing an impeachment inquiry in terms of Rule 129M of the National Assembly’s rules while a review application brought by the president remains before the courts.The review application is still pending.“The First and Second Respondents are interdicted from commencing an impeachment inquiry in terms of Rule 129M of the Rules of the National Assembly,” the application states.Ramaphosa has asked that the matter be heard on an urgent basis, requesting that the court dispense with the ordinary rules governing time periods and service.The application cites Didiza as the first respondent and Gana as the second respondent. The third, fourth and fifth respondents are ATM leader Vuyolwethu Zungula, the EFF and the African Transformation Movement.The president is also seeking a costs order against any party that opposes the application.According to the court filing, respondents who intend opposing the application have eight days after receiving the notice of motion to file a notice of opposition and any answering affidavits.The filing is the latest legal step in Ramaphosa’s efforts to challenge the impeachment process and could have significant implications for parliament’s ability to proceed with its inquiry while the review application is unresolved.TimesLIVE
