United Democratic Movement (UDM) spokesperson Nqabayomzi Kwankwa has stated that President Cyril Ramaphosa is exercising a constitutional right by taking the Section 89 panel report on judicial review, but that he will eventually have to account to Parliament for the Phala Phala matter.
Reacting to the President’s decision to challenge the report in court, Kwankwa emphasised he was speaking on behalf of the UDM, not as a coalition partner. He noted that there is “nothing untoward or new” about the President’s action, adding that calls for Ramaphosa to resign would be “ludicrous” as they would preempt a judicial process that has not yet begun.
“This constitutional right we exercise it all the time,” Kwankwa said, pointing out that the Economic Freedom Fighters (EFF) and the African Transformation Movement (ATM) previously took a parliamentary process on judicial review when they were dissatisfied.
However, Kwankwa described the timing as “unfortunate” and driven by political reasons, given how long Ramaphosa took to seek judicial review.
He also rejected suggestions that a parliamentary process could run parallel to the court proceedings. “Once the matter is sub judice, Parliament will have to put that process on hold until it’s completed,” he explained. “It’s a matter of delaying the inevitable. At some point, he’s going to have to account to Parliament obviously for the Phala Phala matter in some shape or form.”
Kwankwa concluded that while the UDM respects and supports the legal step taken, “when the matter reaches Parliament, we are going to interact with it very robustly.”