Africa — 2026-05-08

South Africa Constitutional Court Revives Ramaphosa Impeachment Inquiry Over Phala Phala Scandal

South Africa's Constitutional Court on Friday struck down the National Assembly's December 2022 vote blocking an impeachment inquiry against President Cyril Ramaphosa, in a case brought by opposition parties the Economic Freedom Fighters and the African Transformation Movement. Chief Justice Mandisa Maya declared the vote "inconsistent with the Constitution, invalid, and set aside," and ordered the independent panel's report referred to a parliamentary impeachment committee. Ramaphosa's office said he respected the ruling and that no one was above the law. Al Jazeera reported the committee is expected to take several months before deciding whether to recommend formal proceedings, which would require a two-thirds National Assembly majority to remove him from office.

Analysis
The ruling strips Parliament of the December 2022 procedural shield and forces a committee confrontation Ramaphosa has so far avoided, corroborated across four same-day outlets at moderate confidence. Whether a formal recommendation emerges within six months is uncertain: the independent panel's report provides a ready basis, but ANC dominance and GNU coalition pressures create strong incentives to slow-walk the process. The two-thirds removal threshold renders actual ouster very unlikely under current parliamentary arithmetic. Ramaphosa's public welcome of the ruling may convert the legal setback into a governance credential that reinforces his GNU position precisely because the removal math carries little real risk.

4 sources

South Africa top court revives impeachment inquiry against president - Al Jazeera
South Africa's Top Court Overturns Parliament's Quashing of Ramaphosa Report - Bloomberg
ConCourt places Ramaphosa under parliamentary investigation over Phala Phala - News24
South Africa's top court revives Ramaphosa cash scandal, paving way for impeachment - The Washington Post