South Africa's ANC executive closes ranks around Ramaphosa over "Farmgate" scandal, SABC reports

ReutersThu, May 14, 2026 at 6:31 AM UTC

0

1 / 0South Africa's ANC party meets to discuss President's Farmgate scandalMembers of the African National Congress (ANC) at the National Executive Committee (NEC) of the ANC to discuss a court ruling that revived impeachment proceedings against President Cyril Ramaphosa over the "Farmgate" scandal, in Cape Town, South Africa, May 13, 2026. REUTERS/Esa Alexander

JOHANNESBURG, May 14 (Reuters) - A meeting of the National Executive Committee of South Africa's African National ‌Congress on Wednesday resolved to close ranks around ‌President Cyril Ramaphosa over his "Farmgate" scandal, public broadcaster SABC reported.

• The ​meeting supported Ramaphosa's decision to launch a legal challenge against an independent panel report that found evidence he committed misconduct, SABC politics reporter Samkele Maseko wrote in a ‌post on X.

• ⁠Ramaphosa earlier this week faced down calls to resign over the scandal, in which ⁠thieves stole bundles of cash stuffed in a sofa on Ramaphosa's ranch in 2020.

• The ANC blocked impeachment proceedings ​against Ramaphosa ​over Farmgate in 2022 ​but the constitutional court ‌revived the process last week.

Advertisement

• The ANC's National Executive Committee, a decision-making body that guides members, met on Wednesday to discuss how to handle the scandal.

• At the start of the meeting, a top ANC official ‌threw his weight behind Ramaphosa, ​telling reporters that calls for Ramaphosa ​to step down ​were opportunistic and there was nothing in ‌the constitutional court judgment that ​said Ramaphosa ​must resign.

• Ramaphosa, head of state since 2018, has denied wrongdoing over Farmgate.

• Around 0800 GMT ANC ​officials will brief ‌the media on the outcomes of the National ​Executive Committee meeting.

(Reporting by Anathi Madubela and ​Sfundo Parakozov;Editing by Alexander Winning)

Original Article on Source

Source: “AOL Breaking”