Before the ballot boxes... the Farmgate scandal haunts the South African president

Written by: Mohammed Omran

Political pressure is mounting on the South African president. Cyril RamaphosaFollowing renewed controversy over the “Farmgate” scandal, which has become one of the most embarrassing issues for the president since he came to power in 2018, there are concerns within the African National Congress about its impact on his popularity ahead of the upcoming municipal elections in November.

What is the Farmgate scandal that threatens Ramaphosa's future?

The “Farmgate” scandal is known as the case of the theft of foreign currency from the private farm of South African President Cyril Ramaphosa in the Vala Vala area in 2020, after a former intelligence official revealed that huge sums of dollars were hidden inside a sofa on the farm. The incident sparked widespread controversy regarding the source of the money, why it was not deposited in banks, and whether it had been officially declared. Ramaphosa confirmed that the money came from the sale of buffalo on the farm, denying any legal or financial violations.

The African National Congress (ANC) in South Africa is holding a meeting of its National Executive Committee regarding the “Farmgate“ scandal in which President Cyril Ramaphosa is still implicated. .

The meeting, which was scheduled to take place on Tuesday evening, was postponed due to bad weather in Cape Town.

Ramaphosa faced calls to resign on Monday over his involvement in the theft of foreign currency that was hidden in a sofa at his farmhouse in 2020, in a case known as the “Farmgate” scandal.

Last week, the Constitutional Court revived impeachment proceedings against Ramaphosa, and during a televised address to the nation, Ramaphosa said he respected the Constitutional Court’s decision that reopened the door to his impeachment last week, but Ramaphosa vowed to defend himself.

He said: ”The Constitutional Court’s ruling does not obligate me to resign from my position, despite calls in some circles urging me to resign.”.

The scandal, dubbed “Farmgate” by local media, has been a major embarrassment for Ramaphosa since it erupted in 2022, when he came to power promising to fight corruption and clean up the image of his party, the African National Congress.

Political analysts said they expected Ramaphosa to try to refute the misconduct allegations against him, but he faced increasing pressure ahead of the November municipal elections, in which his party was already expected to perform poorly.

”The timing couldn’t be worse from the ANC’s perspective,” said independent political analyst Daniel Silk.

In 2022, the African National Congress blocked the impeachment process through a vote in parliament, but the Constitutional Court said last Friday that the vote was invalid and that the allegations of theft should be further investigated.

Ramaphosa, who has been president since 2018, denied any wrongdoing.

He said thieves stole $580,000 from a couch at his Valla Valla hunting ranch in 2020, although a former intelligence official said the stolen amount was at least $4 million.

The theft raised questions about how Ramaphosa obtained all this cash, whether he had declared it, and why he stuffed it into furniture instead of depositing it in a bank.

Ramaphosa, a wealthy businessman before becoming president, said the money represented proceeds from the sale of buffalo.

An investigation by the central bank concluded that he did not violate foreign exchange control regulations.

A vote to impeach the president requires a two-thirds majority to pass, and although the African National Congress lost its parliamentary majority in the 2024 elections, it still holds about 40 percent of the seats in the National Assembly.

For its part, the political party of former President Jacob Zuma, Umkhonto Wiseze, sent a letter to the Speaker of the National Assembly over the weekend asking her to set a date for a vote of no confidence in Ramaphosa.