EFF fights Phala Phala ruling, rejects Ramaphosa’s harm claim

The Economic Freedom Fighters (EFF) has rejected President Cyril Ramaphosa’s argument that unchecked parliamentary processes can cause irreparable reputational and political harm before a final decision is reached.

The party has launched an urgent Constitutional Court appeal to overturn a ruling that halted parliamentary public hearings into President Ramaphosa’s Phala Phala farm saga.

The EFF is seeking to set aside a Western Cape High Court decision, arguing that the judiciary improperly prevented Parliament’s Impeachment Committee from carrying out its constitutional duties.

EFF MP Mazwi Blose says using legal action to delay the impeachment process sets a dangerous precedent for accountability.

Blose says, “I really don’t understand that argument, by the way, to say that when a person has been given a platform to clear their name, they argue that there will be irreparable harm caused to them. Because precisely what the impeachment inquiry seeks to do is to bring the president to the forefront, in front of the public, in front of South Africa, and say: clear your name”.

“So I don’t understand why the president says he’s going to suffer irreparable harm. There’s no such that’s going to happen. It’s just tactics for him to delay accountability, and he doesn’t want to be held accountable and to tell the truth in terms of what would have happened in that farm. So that argument for us doesn’t really hold water,” Blose adds.