Cyril Ramaphosa
Ramaphosa faces a Constitutional Court appeal to resume his Phala Phala impeachment, a diplomatic rupture with Nigeria and Ghana over xenophobic violence, and an electricity overhaul backed by Chinese commitments for over 100GW of new capacity.
Cyril Ramaphosa is governing through a dense stretch of overlapping pressures: his Phala Phala impeachment fight heading to the Constitutional Court, a diplomatic rupture with Nigeria and Ghana over xenophobic violence, and an electricity overhaul gaining Chinese backing.
The Section 89 Committee filed for direct Constitutional Court access on August 5 to overturn the interdict pausing hearings into the 2020 theft from his farm. The committee can summon him if he refuses to testify. The EFF and ATM filed a separate petition, with Julius Malema arguing the judiciary is improperly blocking Parliament's accountability function.
The xenophobic violence fallout remains his most damaging diplomatic front. At least seven are dead; Nigeria repatriated roughly 1,500 citizens and Ghana nearly 900. President Tinubu refused to personally receive Ramaphosa's envoy, asking why he should "when their people are killing Nigerians." Ghana cancelled his planned August visit. His government blocked Ghana's AU bid to isolate South African xenophobia as a standalone agenda item. Ramaphosa condemned the violence as "sad and abhorrent" while defending South Africa's right to manage irregular migration, satisfying neither side.
On the economy, he backed an electricity overhaul splitting Eskom into generation, transmission, and distribution, with Chinese commitments for over 100GW secured by Electricity Minister Ramokgopa. A $500 million credit-guarantee vehicle is being licensed for private infrastructure investment. SARB Governor Kganyago credited his Operation Vulindlela reforms but warned progress remains slow, citing state capture damage.
In governance, Ramaphosa forced Deputy Finance Minister Masondo from the PIC chair, accepted IDAC head Andrea Johnson's resignation after she conceded baseless corruption charges against eight Crime Intelligence officers, cleared Gauteng DPP Andrew Chauke of misconduct, and extended the Madlanga Commission to November 16. He holds a pending suspension decision on Judge President Mbenenge. His Dina Pule appointment as Social Development Minister drew condemnation from the DA, ActionSA, Cosatu, and the ANC Veterans League.
On their plate
The Section 89 Committee filed for direct Constitutional Court access on August 5 to overturn the Western Cape High Court interdict pausing hearings into the 2020 theft from Ramaphosa's farm. The committee can summon the president if he refuses to testify voluntarily. The EFF and ATM filed a separate petition urging the same court to resume proceedings, with Julius Malema arguing the judiciary is improperly halting Parliament's accountability function.
At least seven people died in xenophobic violence that triggered mass repatriations of roughly 1,500 Nigerians and 900 Ghanaians. President Tinubu refused to meet Ramaphosa's special envoy and demanded South Africa ratify the 2025 Early Warning Mechanism before any high-level talks. Ghana cancelled Ramaphosa's planned August visit. His government blocked Ghana's AU bid to make South African xenophobia a standalone agenda item, substituting a broad continental migration framework. Ramaphosa condemned the violence as "sad and abhorrent" while defending South Africa's right to manage irregular migration.
Ramaphosa backed an electricity overhaul splitting Eskom into generation, transmission, and distribution, with Electricity Minister Ramokgopa securing Chinese commitments for over 100GW of new capacity and domestic manufacturing of grid components. A $500 million credit-guarantee vehicle is being licensed and listed to mobilize private investment in transmission, ports, rail, and water, targeting 3.5% growth by 2030. He opened the first 155MW phase of the Ummbila Emoyeni wind farm in Mpumalanga, part of a planned 900MW hybrid energy cluster.
Ramaphosa forced Deputy Finance Minister David Masondo from the PIC board chair via ultimatum and appointed Seiso Mohai as replacement. He accepted the immediate resignation of IDAC head Andrea Johnson after she conceded corruption charges against eight Crime Intelligence officers were baseless. He cleared Gauteng DPP Andrew Chauke of misconduct, extended the Madlanga Commission to November 16, and holds a pending suspension decision on Judge President Selby Mbenenge. His appointment of Dina Pule as Social Development Minister drew condemnation from the DA, ActionSA, Cosatu, and the ANC Veterans League.
Ramaphosa led ANC door-to-door voter mobilization in Gauteng and the Western Cape ahead of November 4 local government elections, saying he left "feeling very encouraged" about ANC support. The IEC processed 2.9 million registration transactions, bringing the voters' roll to 28.5 million, with youth aged 16 to 29 accounting for 80% of new registrations. He also reshuffled the GNU cabinet on June 30 following a DA request, replacing John Steenhuisen as Agriculture Minister with Willie Aucamp.
Key relationships
Malema filed an affidavit with the Constitutional Court arguing the judiciary is improperly halting Parliament's accountability function, pressing to resume Ramaphosa's impeachment hearings.
Co-chaired the SA-Namibia Bi-National Commission on July 17, signing seven bilateral agreements and proposing a green industrial corridor via the Boegoebaai port. She invited Ramaphosa to Namibia for the next session and voiced support for South Africa's SADC chairship in August 2026.
As Speaker, Didiza refused Ramaphosa's request to suspend parliamentary impeachment proceedings pending his legal reviews, citing institutional integrity over political alignment. She later declined to oppose his High Court interdict application.
Ramaphosa issued an ultimatum that forced Masondo's resignation from the PIC board chair, then appointed Seiso Mohai as replacement.
Keep reading in the app
Where they stand, in full, free in the app.
Coming soonGoogle Play