The next step in presidential impeachment process; possible movement on January fire repairs

While political parties represented in Parliament had submitted a total of 17 names by 1 September, Thursday’s programming committee was told the availability of the proposed panel members is first being established. 

“You may feel there’s a bit of a delay, but it’s better to have that now (than delays later)… Hopefully, by Monday we will be announcing the panel,” National Assembly Speaker Nosiviwe Mapisa-Nqakula told the programming committee.

Once announced, that panel has 30 days to get back to the National Assembly with its assessment on whether the president should face an inquiry into removal from office in terms of Section 89 of the Constitution, as proposed in the motion from African Transformation Movement leader Vuyolwethu Zungula.

If the independent panel, which works from papers, but also receives written input from President Ramaphosa, decides no grounds for impeachment exist — and the National Assembly adopts this — the impeachment motion ends there and then.

The Section 89 impeachment parliamentary rules echo those for the removal from office of heads of the constitutionally established Chapter 9 institutions to support democracy, of which proceedings are under way against suspended Public Protector Busisiwe Mkhwebane.

The fact that Ramaphosa is seeking to make representations to this panel emerged in the House on 30 August.

Telling MPs he had been “counselled and advised to address this matter when (investigative) processes have been done”, Ramaphosa added, “It is important for me that due process is followed…  including the process that’s set to unfold in Parliament.”

Just over a week later, Deputy President David “DD” Mabuza confirmed in a parliamentary reply that Ramaphosa had “already briefed the leadership of the governing party” and indicated “he is ready to cooperate with any investigation on this matter, including the Section 89 process that Parliament has initiated”.

It’s not impossible that the president and his team are hoping the independent panel will find no grounds to proceed with the constitutional impeachment motion — as would the Hawks, the South African Reserve Bank (to whom answers were due on Thursday) and the Public Protector.

The president’s replies to the Public Protector probe, according to News24, say that Sudanese, Dubai-based businessman Hazim Mustafa paid $580,000 for buffalo in December 2019, before the February 2020 theft, although it appears that the animals remain to be collected.

On Thursday, it emerged that Ramaphosa would complete his question slot on the Phala Phala robbery on 29 September, his next scheduled Q&A session in the House. The four supplementary questions permitted in terms of parliamentary rules were not completed.

EFF Chief Whip Floyd Shivambu, who, in the last disrupted question session, had proposed an urgent rescheduling, on Thursday realised the extent to which he had been outmanoeuvred.

That date, which last week had emerged as an ANC preference, was confirmed in the Rule 210 deadlock-breaking mechanism of the Speaker, ANC Chief Whip Pemmy Majodina and Mabuza in his capacity as leader of government business, or liaison between Cabinet and Parliament.

“President has since written back and has indicated the earliest opportunity he can attend this outstanding matter is the 29 of September, which is the day anyway allocated for questions to the President,” Mapisa-Nqakula told the programming committee on the response to her letter.