Anglican Archbishop, Thabo Makgoba, says that South Africa should be ruled by a respected elder until the next election; leading a government of national unity, if President Cyril Ramaphosa loses the political support of his party.
Pressure is mounting on Ramaphosa to resign following the release of the Section 89 panel report which found that he has a case to answer regarding the Phala Phala farm theft matter.
Presidential Spokesperson, Vincent Magwenya, addressed the nation on Thursday evening, saying that Ramaphosa will soon make an announcement on the report.
Makgoba says the ANC “seems to be in meltdown”.
He says most South Africans want to see their political leaders dealing with problems such as rolling blackouts and joblessness urgently and are probably getting impatient with seeing a governing party “at war with itself.”
“If the president loses the political support of his party before a final determination of his conduct is made, I call for the establishment of a government of national unity under a respected elder to stabilise the country until the next election. And during the next year, we need to hold an economic Codesa to address the real crisis facing the country, which is the scandalous gap between those who benefit from intergenerational wealth and those who are locked out of the economy.”
Public deserves a thorough explanation
Corruption Watch says President Cyril Ramaphosa should not yet consider announcing his resignation due to lack of adequate information available to the public on the Phala Phala farm saga.
This follows the release of a Section 89 Panel report which found that Ramaphosa has a case to answer for the alleged 2020 burglary at his farm in Limpopo.
Some political parties and organisations are calling for the president to resign, claiming that the revelations have left him discredited.
However, Executive Director of Corruption Watch Karam Singh says the public should wait for Ramaphosa’s response.
“I would be really interested to fully understand the president’s response to this matter. He has never taken the public fully into his confidence, he has given incomplete statements at different stages in the process. I am not saying the president hasn’t engaged in potential wrongdoing, which may eventually disqualify him from office, but at this stage as the public we just don’t necessarily have enough information to draw those conclusions.”
-Additional reporting by SABC News
