In a major legal development that shakes South African political landscape, the Western Cape High Court has issued an order temporarily halting impeachment proceedings targeting President Cyril Ramaphosa, centered on the controversial 2020 theft of more than $580,000 in cash from his private Phala-Phala farm.
The Friday ruling does not bring the entire impeachment process to a permanent stop, however. The multi-party parliamentary committee tasked with overseeing the inquiry is still permitted to carry out preliminary administrative and preparatory work while the legal challenge plays out in the courts.
Impeachment proceedings were initially launched by national lawmakers back in June, following the release of a critical parliamentary inquiry report that found Ramaphosa had substantive questions to answer regarding his response to the theft. The report raised multiple pressing points of contention: how such a large sum of cash ended up stashed inside a sofa on his farm, the origin of the funds, whether any foreign currency included in the stolen amount was properly declared to regulatory authorities, and why the burglary was not immediately reported to South African police services.
Ramaphosa has contested the findings of the parliamentary report through the court system, and filed an application to suspend impeachment proceedings until his legal challenge to the report is fully resolved. On Saturday, Ramaphosa’s office released a statement welcoming the high court’s latest judgment, noting that the president remains committed to upholding institutional accountability.
“The President reaffirms his respect of judicial independence and separation of powers enshrined in our Constitution,” the statement read, adding that Ramaphosa will “cooperate with and abide by processes of accountability.”
This long-running controversy, dubbed the Phala-Phala scandal, has been one of the most persistent and damaging political challenges Ramaphosa has faced since he took office as South Africa’s head of state in 2018. The legal battle traces back to earlier this year, when South Africa’s Constitutional Court — the nation’s highest judicial body — upheld the validity of the parliamentary investigation report, clearing the way for impeachment proceedings to move forward. That ruling came after the ruling African National Congress (ANC) party initially secured a parliamentary vote to block the inquiry from advancing.
The impeachment committee is composed of legislative representatives from every political party represented in South Africa’s national parliament. Following the high court’s order Friday, most party representatives confirmed they would first conduct a full review of the judgment before deciding on whether to file an appeal against the ruling.