Political analyst Lukhona Mnguni says the African Transformation Movement (ATM) should have waited for the Constitutional Court judgment regarding donations for the CR17 campaign before tabling a motion of no confidence against President Cyril Ramaphosa.
The motion was filed by the ATM leader Vuyolwethu Zungula in February, before the COVID-19 lockdown began and is linked to allegations that Ramaphosa misled Parliament about donations made to his ANC presidential campaign in 2017.
The Democratic Alliance (DA) has already made it clear that it will not support the motion in Parliament today.
Mnguni says the ATM’s decision to table the motion is premature.
“They could have waited for the concourt judgement and if that judgement favoured the sentiment that the president ought to have disclosed the funders of the CR17 campaign that might have given a whole lot more leg and legitimacy in the motion that they are tabling today in parliament, if it will go ahead in any case,” says Mnguni.
National Assembly Speaker Thandi Modise has since declined that the motion be conducted through a secret ballot.
The ANC says it is not worried about the motion, as the ATM says they have garnered a lot of support from other parties and they have confidence their motion will pass.
Analysis of the ATM’s motion of no-confidence against President Cyril Ramaphosa
Meanwhile, political analyst Ebrahim Fakir says although the vote of no confidence in President Cyril Ramaphosa comes at a time when he’s in a position of vulnerability, it’s unlikely to succeed.
Fakir says it would take a miracle for such a motion to succeed.
“Remember, you need 201 members in the majority in terms of the Constitution and even if you have, the DA has already made it clear that it will not support the motion, this is the problem. You don’t know that this is going to work. The EFF with its 44 odd members is going to play a game as they always do.”
In the video below, Leadership Expert Dr Lazwe Majola says while the motion is unlikely to succeed, the ANC and Ramaphosa need to be concerned the about impact this motion will have on Ramaphosa’s leadership:
