A South African court has granted President Cyril Ramaphosa a temporary reprieve from an ongoing impeachment inquiry related to the “Farmgate” scandal. The Western Cape high court has suspended parliamentary proceedings into whether the president should face removal from office, pending the outcome of a separate legal challenge he has filed against an independent panel’s findings.
The controversy stems from a 2020 theft at Ramaphosa’s private farm in Limpopo province, where burglars stole at least $580,000 hidden inside a sofa. The incident only became public knowledge in 2022 when former intelligence chief Arthur Fraser disclosed the theft, raising questions about whether the president had concealed the crime from authorities and potentially violated currency exchange laws. Ramaphosa has maintained his innocence, stating the cash originated from the sale of buffalo.
An independent panel concluded in 2022 that the president had a case to answer, though parliament initially voted against launching impeachment proceedings. However, South Africa’s Constitutional Court ruled in May that legislators had acted unlawfully by dismissing the panel’s report. The court’s decision reversed the decision and reopened the possibility of impeachment. Ramaphosa’s legal team successfully argued that halting the impeachment committee’s work was necessary to prevent irreparable harm to his reputation while his challenge against the panel’s findings is heard in September.
The ruling has generated mixed reactions from South Africa’s political parties, with some supporting Ramaphosa and others criticizing his use of courts to delay the investigation.
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