South African President Cyril Ramaphosa announced on Monday that he will not resign from office despite the establishment of an impeachment committee to re-examine allegations that he committed serious misconduct by concealing the theft of more than half a million dollars in cash, which was stashed in a sofa at his sports farm.
In a televised address to the nation, Ramaphosa said he would legally challenge a parliamentary report that found credible evidence of wrongdoing on his part, a process that is likely to significantly delay potential impeachment proceedings against him.
He has faced calls from various quarters, especially opposition parties, to step down from his post as these processes have unfolded.
His announcement came hours after the South African Parliament said it would establish an impeachment committee in compliance with a ruling by the country's highest court last week that the report should be referred to the impeachment committee.
“So I want to respectfully make it clear that I will not be resigning,” Ramaphosa said on Monday.
His decision follows a ruling by the top Constitutional Court on Friday that said the 2022 parliament vote that halted impeachment proceedings against Ramaphosa over the scandal was unconstitutional.
Ramaphosa's African National Congress (ANC) party had a majority in Parliament at the time of the vote. The vote took place despite an independent report finding evidence of alleged wrongdoing by the President in not properly reporting the theft to police and trying to keep the investigation secret in order to recover the money.
The Constitutional Court said last week that, as per procedure, the 2022 independent report should have been referred to the impeachment committee for further investigation.
According to the constitution, impeachment of the leader of Africa's top economy would require the support of at least two-thirds of lawmakers in the 400-member parliament.
The multi-party impeachment committee still needs to conduct an investigation before any move to hold a vote on impeachment. No time limit was given for this in Monday's Parliament statement.
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