The South African president is fighting for his long-term politics amid an ongoing scandal that has tarnished his reputation as an anti-apartheid icon admired for tackling the problems of Africa’s most evolved economy.
Cyril Ramaphosa, 70, says he is innocent of charges for hiding at least $580,000 on a couch at his ranch. He is accused of failing to sign the cash with the government and, when it was stolen, of failing to report the theft to police, in order to avoid questions about how he received the U. S. cash.
South Africa’s ruling African National Congress party is due to vote at a convention starting Friday on whether Ramaphosa steps down as party leader. The last two South African presidents had to resign after squandering the party’s leadership at the ANC convention.
Ramaphosa easily survived an impeachment vote in parliament this week, strengthening his position on the party’s convention vote. He is also under investigation on conceivable charges of illegal possession of foreign currency.
“From Ramaphoria to Ramafailure,” read a headline this week on the website News24, about a story describing how widespread admiration for Ramaphosa’s leadership in the country of 60 million people has become a country of dismay.
Once renowned for his anti-apartheid activism and his connection to Nelson Mandela, Ramaphosa has grown from being part of an industry union to becoming a board member and shareholder in several of South Africa’s largest companies. Ranked as one of the richest men in South Africa, he looked fine. . . Equipped to combat corruption that has spread to virtually every corner of South African life, as well as dealing with the police and accessing government services.
One of Ramaphosa’s favorite projects is his Phala Phala ranch in Limpopo province, where he raises Ankole farm animals and African antelopes. was stolen in 2020, Ramaphosa did not report the theft to the police, to avoid questions about where the money came from and why it had not been reported to the authorities.
Ramaphosa said his ranch received money selling buffalo to a Sudanese businessman and that the ranch manager didn’t know what to do with the money.
Ramaphosa’s supporters say the accusations opposing him, that he violated South African laws prohibiting citizens from possessing foreign money and pointing it out to the financial government, pale in comparison to the billions of dollars critics say have been stolen from the state through affiliates of the former president. Jacob Zuma through fraudulent contracts with state-owned companies.
“The sadness in Ramaphosa is deep,” said William Gumede, head of the Democracy Works think tank. “But South Africa’s expectations have fallen so low that Ramaphosa is still considered better than other alternatives. I’m amazed at how this is the view of big business forums over others in rural villages.
Parliament voted 214-148 on Tuesday against opening impeachment proceedings, with Ramaphosa winning a majority of lawmakers in the ruling African National Congress, which holds the most seats.
This ANC bodes well for Ramaphosa’s re-election as party leader. He will have to win the leadership of the party to be re-elected for a moment as president in 2024.
Mandela is the only post-apartheid South African president to retire voluntarily, having served a term from 1994 to 1999. Thabo Mbeki, Mandela’s successor, was forced to resign in 2008 after feuding with a faction related to his then-deputy, Zuma.
A ruling on conducting a wide-ranging judicial investigation into corruption said those years were characterized by endemic looting of state coffers. Zuma was forced to resign when corruption allegations against him turned damning.
When Ramaphosa succeeded Zuma in 2018, he promised to clear up the mess and subsidize the judicial inquiry. He has earned respect for ably leading the country during the COVID-19 pandemic. But the hidden dollar scandal forced him to stay in power.
“The majority of the ANC will undoubtedly close ranks around Ramaphosa, and he will continue as party leader and as president of the country,” Gumede said. a quid pro quo, and you will no longer be able to fight corruption effectively. It will remain in force, but it will have less strength to do anything. This will turn him into a lame duck.
Ramaphosa’s political struggles come as South Africa faces a huge range of problems, an unemployment rate of 35%, inflation of 7. 4% and nationwide blackouts lasting more than seven hours a day.
“Across South Africa, there is a sense of despair. People don’t have political leaders or political parties to trust,” Gumede said. The only ray of hope is that the 2024 elections will bring greater organization of leaders.
Ordinary South Africans are tired of cynicism about Ramaphosa.
Lerato Makgatho, 38, who lives in Johannesburg’s Kempton Park district, said the revelations about cash at Phala Phala surprised her.
“He’s known to be a billionaire, so hearing about dollar money on a couch at his farmhouse is not compatible with that image,” he said. “This was a surprise to me. “
Thabiso Kome, 35, a network activist from Tembisa township, east of Johannesburg, said he hoped Ramaphosa would solve the scourge of corruption because it is so prevalent in the ruling party.
“Some of us have noticed corruption locally, in local clinics and hospitals. This kind of corruption is solved through one person,” Kome said. “It’s general to hear about corruption and controversy when it comes to the ANC. Ramaphosa, He is one of them.
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