POLL | Are you happy with Ramaphosa's response to the Phala Phala report?

President Cyril Ramaphosa's response to damning findings against him by an independent panel that probed the Phala Phala saga has drawn fierce debate.

LISTEN | Phala phala report and its significance

The panel, headed by retired chief justice Sandile Ngcobo, last week found Ramaphosa may have committed a serious violation of the law and serious misconduct in terms of the constitution.

Ramaphosa's initial reaction to the findings was to protest his innocence.

He said he had endeavoured throughout his tenure as president to abide by his oath of office and set an example of respect for the constitution, institutions, due process and law.

Spokesperson Vincent Magwenya said the president was applying his mind to the report and would make an announcement in due course.

Amid speculation he might announce his resignation, Ramaphosa’s office indicated he would address the nation on Thursday. This was later postponed so he could consult stakeholders.

Magwenya later reiterated Ramaphosa would not make a “hasty” decision.

Speculation that Ramaphosa was spoken down from resigning brewed as ANC national executive and working committee meetings took place.

In the end, the party decided to challenge the report and Ramaphosa, through his spokespersons and court papers, came out defiant.

While some applauded Ramaphosa for being “measured and calculated” in his response, others said he should have addressed the nation instead of going to ground. 

Many alleged he had been manipulated by others who had a lot to lose by him resigning.

In court papers filed at the Constitutional Court on Monday, Ramaphosa claimed the panel “misconceived its mandate ... and considered matters not properly before it”.

He said it was “most unfair to me”, and asked the court to declare the report unlawful and set it aside.

He also requested it declare “any steps taken by the National Assembly pursuant to the report equally unlawful and invalid”.

ActionSA leader Herman Mashaba said Ramaphosa's response to the report has been a “bad move”.

“Let the president address the nation and take us into his confidence on what happened at Phala Phala two years ago. Going underground to strategise how to manage South Africa and only communicate through a spokesperson is a bad move,” he said.

EFF leader Julius Malema said Ramaphosa is “being arrogant in his criminality and behaving like someone who did nothing wrong”.

“A president, after receiving such a report, has the responsibility to come out to reassure the markets and the nation that things are in order. But he abandoned that — he abandoned his accountability to parliament. He went into hiding,” Malema told a press conference on Monday.

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