Phala Phala Interdict Bid 'Will Fail', Says Vuyo Zungula Ahead of Court Date

• The ATM's Vuyo Zungula said President Ramaphosa's court application to halt the Section 89 impeachment committee is unlikely to succeed
• He argued that no lower court can overturn an instruction that originated from the Constitutional Court
• The timing of the court challenge has raised questions about Ramaphosa's motives, given that the Public Protector's report has existed since 2023

CAPE TOWN — The African Transformation Movement (ATM) Parliamentary leader Vuyo Zungula has warned that President Cyril Ramaphosa's court bid to interdict Parliament's Section 89 impeachment committee is almost certain to fail, citing the constitutional basis of the process and the hierarchy of the courts.

Speaking to SABC News ahead of the scheduled court hearing, Zungula outlined two grounds for his assessment. First, courts have previously refused to halt parliamentary processes at the request of the former Public Protector, and the judiciary is unlikely to contradict that precedent.

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Second, the impeachment committee itself was established on the instruction of the Constitutional Court, the highest court in the land, meaning no lower court has the authority to reverse that directive.

Section 89 process cannot be delayed

Zungula emphasised that the broader constitutional principle at stake goes beyond a short postponement. The Section 89 removal process is explicitly provided for in the Constitution, and he argued that no individual, regardless of their position, should be permitted to obstruct or delay Parliament from executing that mandate.

He drew a clear distinction between two separate legal avenues available to the president: a review of the Public Protector's report, which remains a legitimate and separate matter, and an interdict seeking to stop Parliament from proceeding with the inquiry altogether. Zungula maintained that only the former is legally defensible.

Central to his argument was the question of timing. The Public Protector's report relating to the Phala Phala farm incident has been in existence since 2023. Ramaphosa previously approached the Constitutional Court, which declined jurisdiction and directed him to a lower court. He did not pursue that route. Zungula said the president's decision to seek relief at this late stage, only once the inquiry was imminent, undermined the suggestion that his primary concern was clearing his name or protecting his reputation.

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"The only reason why he's going to court now, it is not to clear his name, it is not to protect his reputation, but it is to stop the consequence of now having an inquiry," he said.

Watch Zungula's full assessment on the Phala Phala court challenge:

Ramaphosa evading accountability: Zungula

In a related article, Briefly News reported on the ATM's criticism of Ramaphosa's urgent court bid to halt the impeachment process regarding the Phala Phala scandal. This legal challenge occurs amidst growing scrutiny over the allegations that large sums of foreign currency were concealed at Ramaphosa's game farm, raising serious questions about accountability in the presidency.

Source: Briefly News