Members of Parliament (MPs) debated and voted on the Phala Phala farm report conducted by former judges.

During the voting on Tuesday afternoon 13 December 2022, a total of 214 MPs voted against the adoption of the report of the Independent Panel after it found that President Ramaphosa may have violated his oath of office. Mahumapelo says the matter has the potential to deliver a blow to the party’s image, come the 2024 National Election. He says chances are that the scandal could be used by the opposition parties and also resonate with disgruntled members on the ground who would then vote against the party.

Speaking to SABC News, Mahumapelo, a staunch supporter of former president Jacob Zuma, maintained that president Ramaphosa could have handled the saga differently. Mahumapelo also revealed that the party’s upper structure NEC had requested a 10-minute meeting with him yesterday over the utterances made about the president and the NEC.

“Last week I said I have the conviction to pursue what the African National Congress (ANC) stands for, what the ANC is about and all of us should be doing that. So I still remain in that particular position but I will hear what the meeting has to say, I have written something this morning (Tuesday, 13 December 2022) because some of us could not be allowed to speak in the caucus and discussions could not happen productively and so on, so I have written to the leadership about my own view because I was hoping to speak but unfortunately one could not speak,” Mahumapelo added.

Mahumapelo is among prominent ANC members, including Dr Nkosazana Dlamini-Zuma, and former Free State MEC Mosebenzi Zwane, who voted in favour of the adoption of the report.

This core is aligned to a faction named after the ANC’s policy, namely the Radical Economic Transformation (RET), said to be championed by the suspended ANC SG Ace Magashule and former President Zuma.

The faction has been relentless, along with opposition parties - including the EFF and African Transformation Movement (ATM) - in their call for president Ramaphosa to step down as the president of the country following the scandal where it is said that millions of US dollars were stolen a few years back. 

Recently, whilst addressing the media, former president Zuma called the sitting president of the struggle movement and the country "a corrupt president".

Mahumapelo intends to run for the position of Secretary-General (SG) at the upcoming 55th ANC National Elective Conference this month at Nasrec in Johannesburg.

OFM News