CAPE TOWN - The purpose of President Cyril Ramaphosa's review application may be to prevent the National Assembly (NA) from proceeding with the impeachment process.
"He has made it clear in the review proceedings that halt the proceedings," says legal expert Ulrich Roux.
"Then he will launch an urgent application, which prevents them from continuing with that," he adds.
This is pending the finalisation or the determination of whether that Section 89 panel report is legally sound or not.
Ramaphosa lodged a formal application in the Western Cape High Court to review the Phala Phala Independent Panel report on Tuesday.
The 63-page application asks the court to review and set aside the report, particularly its recommendation in paragraph 264.
In late 2022, an independent panel appointed by the National Assembly – led by former Chief Justice Sandile Ngcobo concluded in paragraph 264 that the information presented disclosed prima facie evidence that Ramaphosa may have: committed a serious violation of the Constitution and exposed himself to a conflict of interest between his official duties and private business.
However, in the court papers, Ramaphosa argues the independent panel misunderstood its mandate in at least four respects and misconstrued what it was supposed to conduct.
READ: Ramaphosa lodges application to challenge Phala Phala report
He says the panel made conclusions based on hearsay statements, without regard to the law.
He also suggests the panel may have acquired a confidential Namibian police report and audio clip illegally. In that, Ramaphosa points the finger at former spy boss Arthur Fraser, who initially exposed the theft at the farm.
The President claims Fraser's allegations were based on speculation, fiction and conjecture.
The Constitutional Court ruled that the National Assembly acted unlawfully when it voted against adopting the panel report, which now forms the basis of the impeachment process.
"We must be careful not to get confused," says Roux. After the ConCourt finding, it means that the NA must go back and consider the report.
"It is not a step backwards," he adds.
According to Roux, the High Court has the power and jurisdiction to find whether the impeachment must be halted, pending the report's review.
"That is that the President's report is trying to enforce with the application," says Roux.