Julius Malema calls for a vote of no confidence in Ramaphosa
Economic Freedom Fighters leader Julius Malema has called for a vote of no confidence in parliament against President Cyril Ramamphosa and ultimately his impeachment regarding the theft of money from his game farm.
Malema told a news briefing on Thursday that his party would approach the courts to compel parliament to investigate the president’s alleged misdemeanours.
“We are not seeking an ordinary motion of no confidence, we seek impeachment,” he said, citing allegations of corruption stemming from the theft of cash in US dollars from Ramaphosa’s Phala Phala game farm in Limpopo, Eskom’s rolling blackouts and the recent death of 21 teenagers at a tavern in the Eastern Cape.
Last month, Malema demanded that Ramaphosa step aside immediately over allegations that he concealed the theft of $4-million from his farm in February 2020. The EFF leader also accused the president of defeating the ends of justice by allegedly applying vigilante methods of interrogation against those suspected to be responsible for the theft.
Ramaphosa has publicly denied any wrongdoing, but on Thursday Malema claimed the president “has confessed to his caucasus, his own faction, that he’s got no defence on the money, that the money was illegal and that he’s got no answers and therefore he must step down”.
He said the EFF had written to the South African Reserve Bank, the South African Revenue Service and the Financial Intelligence Centre to demand that the president be held accountable.
“Who must respect law enforcement agencies and South Africa’s criminal justice system when the sitting head of state chooses a gangsterism approach of hunting those who stole what appears to be stolen dollars from him?” he charged.
Urging other South Africans to join in, Malema said the EFF would embark on a national protest should Ramaphosa refuse to step down.
“The national shut down is to demand our country back from an incompetent, directionless and criminal syndicate that enjoys the protection of white monopoly capital,” he said.