EFF leader Julias Malema has boasted that he had always been right that President Cyril Ramaphosa had resigned following the Phala Phala scandal that rocked the ANC ruling party.
This, after ANC secretary-general Fikile Mbalula confirmed at a press briefing in Barberton, Mpumalanga, on Sunday, as part of the party’s 112th celebrations, that Ramaphosa had indeed resigned.
Mbalula made reference to the point that Cyril Ramaphosa was not a “difficult president”, and “he had at one point resolved that he was leaving his position as the president”.
His resignation came after the scathing findings of the Section 89 Independent Panel to investigate the Phala Phala farm cash scandal. It found that he may have violated the Constitution and his oath of office.
On June 1, 2022, former spy boss Arthur Frazer laid a charge of money laundering against Ramaphosa at the Rosebank police station, accusing him of hiding millions in foreign currency that was stolen at his Phala Phala farm.
This prompted Ramaphosa to consider resigning because of the scandal ahead of the party’s elective conference.
However, it is believed that senior members of the ANC, particularly the party’s chairperson, Gwede Mantashe, and national executive committee (NEC) member, Mondli Gungubele, convinced Ramaphosa not to step down.
In February last year, during an EFF media launch ahead of their 10th anniversary, Malema revealed that Ramaphosa had resigned as president but that he was “saved” by some of his comrades.
In a statement, the red berets said they had always been right about the resignation.
“This naked truth, was framed as conspiracy and rumour mongering, by a government and ruling party that is prone to lies.
“It is the same ruling party that claimed that Ramaphosa had never considered resigning, through its national chairperson, Gwede Mantashe. This sentiment was reiterated by the South African Presidency spokesperson(Vincent Magwenya), who vowed that Ramaphosa would fight the findings of the report and would not resign.”
The statement added that the EFF had been vindicated because the organisation was “always on the side of the truth”.
Malema further slammed the president, saying: “It is patently clear that Ramaphosa has no interest in being the president of South Africa, and this can be seen by the lack of appetite he has to resolve the numerous challenges facing our nation.”
The Star