President Cyril Ramaphosa
JOHANNESBURG - The Constitutional Court has ruled that Parliament’s Phala Phala vote was invalid and unconstitutional.
Handing down the landmark ruling, Chief Justice Mandisa Maya said Parliament must amend Rule 129 of the National Assembly’s rules and refer the matter to an impeachment committee.
Maya said the vote was inconsistent with the Constitution.
Rule 129 governs the process for removing a president in terms of Section 89 of the Constitution.
In December 2022, a majority of Members of Parliament -- 214 -- voted against adopting the report and resolved not to proceed with the process.
The vote followed a report by the Section 89 independent panel, led by retired Chief Justice Sandile Ngcobo, which found that President Cyril Ramaphosa may have violated Section 96(2)(a) of the Constitution and Section 34(1) of the Prevention and Combating of Corrupt Activities Act (PRECCA) in relation to a robbery at his Phala Phala game farm in 2020.
While Ramaphosa argued that the application had been brought too late, the apex court found there was a proper basis to overlook the delay.