Picture: RSA president, Cyril Ramaphosa
By OBAKENG MAJE
21 June 2026 – Action SA said it welcomes the decision by Parliament’s Section 89 Impeachment Committee to oppose the Republic of South Africa (RSA) president, Cyril Ramaphosa’s application to interdict the committee from carrying out its constitutional responsibilities. This comes after Action SA’s letter to both the Speaker of the National Assembly (NA), Thoko Didiza and the Chairperson of the Committee, Makashule Gana, urging Parliament to resist any attempt to frustrate the implementation of the Constitutional Court’s judgment on the Phala Phala matter.
The Daily Maverick said Parliament’s impeachment committee has resolved to oppose Ramaphosa’s urgent interdict application to halt its work while he challenges the report that found he has a case to answer regarding the Phala Phala saga. The interdict case will essentially determine whether Ramaphosa can delay his impeachment hearing, possibly for years if appeals are considered and avoid tough and potentially embarrassing and damaging questions regarding his response to the theft of at least $580,000 from his Phala Phala farm in 2020.
Action SA Member of Parliament (MP), Athol Trollip said the committee’s decision is a victory for constitutional accountability and parliamentary independence. Trollip said Parliament has a constitutional duty to hold the executive accountable, to exercise oversight over the conduct of public office bearers and to ensure that no person, regardless of their office, is placed beyond scrutiny.
“The Section 89 Committee exists precisely to determine whether the conduct of the President warrants the serious constitutional consequences contemplated by Section 89 of the Constitution. That process must be allowed to proceed without interference, delay, or political shielding.
“Action SA notes with concern the prevalence of certain parties within the Government of National Unity, many of whom have sought to speak out of both sides of their mouths by professing support for accountability, while simultaneously avoiding a clear position on the President’s attempt to halt the inquiry,” he said.
Trollip further said South Africans deserve honesty from those parties. He added that they must decide whether they stand for constitutional accountability or political expediency.
Meanwhile, the NA Speaker, Thoko Didiza said: “I have resolved to file a notice to abide by an explanatory Affidavit alongside the Impeachment Committee’s opposition papers. The purpose of the explanatory affidavit is to assist the Court with aspects it must consider to make its final determination, including the stringent constitutional obligations on the National Assembly to proceed with and finalise the section 89 proceedings.
“The content of the explanatory affidavit is believed to be consistent not only with the stance adopted by the Impeachment Committee but also with the actions of the Speaker since the Constitutional Court judgment.”
The Guardian 