Mpofu Calls Ramaphosa’s Phala Phala Review Application A Waste Of Time
MK Party legal representative Advocate Dali Mpofu has accused President Cyril Ramaphosa of using the court process to delay accountability over the Section 89 panel’s findings on the Phala Phala farm theft.
Advocate Dali Mpofu, representing the uMkhonto we Sizwe Party (MKP), has criticised President Cyril Ramaphosa’s application to have the findings of the Section 89 Independent Panel report reviewed and set aside, describing the proceedings at the Western Cape High Court as a waste of time.
Ramaphosa is seeking to overturn the report, which found that there was prima facie evidence that he may have committed a serious violation of his oath of office in connection with the theft of $580,000 at his Phala Phala farm.
Mpofu said the MKP viewed the review application as an attempt to delay the process and prevent the President from being held accountable.
He argued that the court proceedings were prolonging a matter in which South Africans were seeking an explanation from the President over the circumstances surrounding the theft.
MKP Accuses Ramaphosa Of Delaying Accountability
Mpofu said the repeated legal challenges amounted to an effort to postpone the issue rather than resolve it.
“So all that we are here is just to waste time, delay, delay, delay, and type Stalingrad, complain about this, stop the evidence leader, the weather and sorts of things to avoid accountability. To just avoid the small letter of accounting to South Africans whose only fault is to want an answer from their President as to whether he is guilty of crime,” Mpofu said.
His comments reflect the MKP’s position on the review proceedings and its interpretation of Ramaphosa’s legal strategy.
Ramaphosa Seeks To Set Aside Section 89 Findings
The President’s review application seeks to have the Section 89 Independent Panel report set aside.
The panel’s report found prima facie evidence that Ramaphosa may have committed a serious violation of his oath of office in relation to the theft of $580,000 from his Phala Phala farm.
The finding does not itself establish that Ramaphosa committed a crime. It concerns the panel’s assessment that there was sufficient prima facie evidence of a potentially serious violation to warrant consideration within the parliamentary process.
The review application places the panel’s findings before the Western Cape High Court for judicial consideration.
Court Challenge Puts Panel Findings Under Review
The proceedings centre on Ramaphosa’s challenge to the report and whether the panel’s findings should stand.
Mpofu has characterised the application as part of a pattern of delays, while the supplied material does not include a response from Ramaphosa or his legal representatives to that accusation.
The Johannesburg Times understands that the court process will determine the legal challenge to the report. Therefore, Mpofu’s assertions that the application is intended to avoid accountability are allegations made on behalf of the MKP and should not be treated as established fact.
