Economic Freedom Fighters (EFF) spokesperson Sinawo Thambo has reaffirmed the party’s commitment to advancing Parliament’s Section 89 impeachment process, despite President Cyril Ramaphosa’s renewed application to review and set aside the independent Phala Phala panel report. Thambo characterized the President’s legal move as a delayed political tactic rather than a genuine challenge to the report’s findings.
According to Thambo, Ramaphosa previously initiated a review application against the report but withdrew it after securing a parliamentary majority to suppress its progress. The President has now reinstated the application four years later, following a Constitutional Court ruling that declared prior attempts to halt the report unconstitutional. Thambo described this timing as evidence that the President is “not an earnest person” and is acting inconsistently with his professed values of transparency and accountability.
Thambo stressed that the Constitutional Court’s judgment remains clear: the Section 89 parliamentary process must continue unless and until the independent panel’s report is formally set aside by a court. “Parliament is not going to stop until it certifies that review report,” Thambo stated, emphasizing that legal challenges do not automatically suspend constitutional processes.
The EFF, as an interested party in the Section 89 proceedings, submitted evidence that informed the report compiled under the oversight of the Chief Justice. Thambo confirmed the party will actively oppose both the President’s review application and any potential application to interdict the impeachment committee’s work. “We are going to take him on whenever he tries to avoid this accountability and transparency,” Thambo said, adding that the EFF will participate in all relevant court processes to safeguard parliamentary proceedings.
Responding to Ramaphosa’s contention that proceeding with impeachment while the report faces judicial review would constitute a “travesty,” Thambo argued that such a position implicitly challenges the Constitutional Court’s authority. He noted that Chief Justice Mandisa Maya’s judgment explicitly directs that parliamentary work continue pending any formal setting aside of the report. “If he’s saying it’s a travesty for us to continue with our work, that means he’s saying that the Constitutional Court is committing a travesty in itself,” Thambo remarked.
Thambo expressed confidence that any attempt by the President to interdict Parliament’s processes would be unsuccessful. While acknowledging the President’s right to pursue legal remedies, Thambo maintained that such actions do not override constitutional mandates for accountability. The EFF remains focused on ensuring the Section 89 process advances without interruption, upholding what Thambo described as the foundational principles of democratic oversight.