The President was the target of a censure motion

South Africa’s largest opposition party announced on Sunday that it would move a motion of no confidence against President Cyril Ramaphosa after an independent panel confirmed criminal charges against him.

The 11-member body of opposition political parties, which includes the country’s three main opposition parties, the Democratic Alliance (DA), the Economic Freedom Fighters (EFF) and Inkatha, said “Ramaphosa’s presidency has become untenable”. Independence Party (IFP).

In its report, the three-member independent commission headed by former Chief Justice Sandile Ngcobo concluded that the head of state may have violated the constitution, abused the oath of office and failed to report the theft of a large sum of money to the competent authorities. In 2020 his farm at “Bala Bala” in the north-east of the country was paid in foreign currency.

In a statement, the panel asserted that the panel’s findings provided Parliament with sufficient evidence to proceed with Ramaphosa’s charges, saying that “voting against the recommendations of the independent panel is a breach of Parliament’s constitutional duty to conduct accountable governance.”

“Previous decisions of the Constitutional Court have condemned Parliament’s lack of control and vigilance over the executive,” he continued.

Separately, “in the interests of justice, transparency and fairness, Ramaphosa should step down from power to pursue investigations without fear of reprisals or repercussions.”

Similarly, the partisan organization “expressed deep concern at the continued delay in the investigation of the Ombudsman Department of the Republic, the South African Reserve Bank, the South African Police Service and all other institutions that should hold Ramaphosa accountable for the many crimes committed in Fala Fala”.

Demands for the resignation of the South African president have intensified since the damning report on the scandal. According to the committee, these facts are a “gross violation” of the country’s laws and constitution.