The Constitutional Court has refused African Transformation Movement (ATM) leader Vuyolwethu Zungula and his party direct access to appeal a Western Cape High Court decision that halted the public hearings of parliament’s Phala Phala impeachment proceedings.The top court said it is not in the interests of justice to hear the matter at this stage because the Western Cape division of the high court is due to determine the review application shortly.The outcome of that review would render moot the interim interdict at issue before the constitutional court.The ruling means the public hearings of the impeachment committee remain suspended in terms of the Western Cape High Court’s interim order while President Cyril Ramaphosa’s challenge to the independent panel’s report is considered.However, impeachment committee chairperson Makashule Gana said the committee’s preparatory work has not been interdicted and will continue.Gana said the committee will meet next week to move closer to finalising its terms of reference and receive an update on the appointment of the evidence leader.“I have noted the decision of the Constitutional Court to dismiss the direct appeal of the Western Cape High Court that interdicted the public hearings of the independent committee,” said Gana. “We are going to continue with our preparatory work in line with the decision that was made by the Western Cape High Court. “The preparatory work of the committee has not been interdicted, and we’ll continue to work to ensure that all the preparatory work is finalised.”The distinction is important because the Constitutional Court’s decision does not end the parliamentary process.While the committee cannot proceed with the public hearings while the interim interdict remains in place, it can continue preparing for it.The dispute stems from the section 89 impeachment process initiated after an independent panel’s findings concerning the theft of foreign currency from Ramaphosa’s Phala Phala farm in 2020.The independent panel, chaired by former chief justice Sandile Ngcobo, found that there was prima facie evidence that Ramaphosa may have committed serious misconduct or violated the law. Parliament subsequently established the impeachment committee to consider the matter.Ramaphosa challenged the panel’s findings in court and sought an interim interdict preventing the committee from proceeding with its public hearings while his review application was being heard.The Western Cape High Court granted the interim interdict, prompting Zungula and other opposition parties to seek to challenge the decision directly in the Constitutional Court.The Constitutional Court has now declined to hear that appeal directly.The ruling also highlights the distinction between the political and legal battles regarding the impeachment process.Opposition parties have characterised Ramaphosa’s court action as an attempt to delay or frustrate parliamentary accountability. The ATM, EFF and MK party have opposed the interdict and sought to ensure the impeachment process proceeds.But the courts have not found that Ramaphosa was barred from approaching the courts for relief. The president’s legal challenge remains before the Western Cape High Court, while the constitutional court has declined to intervene at this stage.For parliament, the latest development means that further public hearings cannot proceed for now, even as the committee continues its preparatory work.As the Constitutional Court declined to make a costs order, each party will bear its own costs in the application.Business Day