Court hears Ramaphosa’s bid to set aside Section 89 panel report

President Cyril Ramaphosa is currently challenging Parliament's Section 89 impeachment process in the Western Cape High Court. His legal team argues that the independent panel examining the Phala Phala matter is not meant to make definitive findings on conflicting versions of events. Instead, the panel's role is limited to determining whether sufficient evidence exists to warrant further parliamentary inquiry.

The legal challenge aims to halt the impeachment process, which stems from the 2020 robbery at Ramaphosa's Phala Phala farm. The court is examining whether there is a difference between saying that the evidence prima facie discloses something and saying there is a prima facie case against a person. Ramaphosa's counsel argues that the panel's approach was to ask whether there is incriminating evidence that, if true, would mean the president committed misconduct, rather than to establish a prima facie case requiring an answer.