A new step by the South African president to halt his potential impeachment.

Written by: Ayman Ragab

South African President Cyril Ramaphosa has filed a lawsuit in the Western Cape High Court seeking to overturn a 2022 independent commission report that concluded there was preliminary evidence suggesting he may have been involved in serious misconduct and a violation of the constitution in what is known as the “Wala Vala” farm scandal.

This legal move comes at a time when parliament is close to forming a special committee to consider impeachment proceedings against the president, following a ruling by the Constitutional Court earlier this year, further heightening political tensions over the future of the case.

Attempts to impeach the South African president

According to the lawsuit filed through the president's lawyers, the appeals seek to overturn the report prepared by a committee established under the rules of the National Assembly, which included prominent judicial figures, including the former chief justice, a retired judge, and a number of legal experts.

In his statement, Ramaphosa asserts that the committee erred in interpreting the scope of its powers and the legal standards required to prove “serious misconduct” under Article 89 of the Constitution, noting that impeachment is only permissible in cases involving deliberate or malicious conduct that violates the Constitution or the law.

He also argues that the committee relied on an inappropriate standard of proof, and conflated legal evidence with undocumented information, including relying on indirect accounts and material that was not properly presented as acceptable evidence.

The documents add that the report was based in part on information provided by the former director general of the State Security Agency, Arthur Fraser, including alleged security reports and audio recordings, which the president's team considers legally insufficient to prove any wrongdoing.

The lawsuit alleges that the committee failed to adhere to binding procedural standards, and that its conclusions were based on circumstantial evidence without sufficient legal scrutiny, which prompted Ramaphosa to demand the report be annulled entirely.

These developments come amid escalating political controversy in South Africa over the “Valla Valla” scandal, which continues to cast a shadow over the country’s political landscape since it was revealed.