President Ramaphosa will deliver SONA 2022 from Cape Town City Hall later this evening. The 69-year-old, who is already carrying the weight of the nation on his shoulders, has also been warned to a severe timekeeping concern.
At the end of January, The Standing Committee on Public Accounts (SCOPA) gave Ramaphosa a ten-day deadline to clarify comments he made about the now-infamous CR17 funds. The cash, raised in order to support Cyril’s run for ANC leader back in 2017, is alleged to have come from some suspicious – and downright illegal – sources.
A leaked recording of the president, which initially surfaced last year, captured the head of state suggesting that he would conceal some details about campaign funding, if it meant protecting the reputation of the ANC.
A fellow party MP, Mervyn Dirks, referred this incident to SCOPA before he was suspended from his position. However, the Committee has taken an interest in the audio clip, and they told Ramaphosa to submit his version of events by Thursday 10 February. With just hours remaining before SONA kicks off, it’s unclear if this deadline will be met.
Should President Ramaphosa fail to respond, it would raise further questions about his involvement in party funding behind the scenes. SCOPA chairperson Mkhuleko Hlengwa says its vital his Committee gets the president’s side of the story.
“With the issue of the president and the recording, we have sent a set of questions which he must respond to. His deadline is today. The committee is pursuing due process. We will not allow a situation to be drawn into factionalism.”
“We are very interested in president making an assertion that public funds WERE used for political party activities. We need the information that the president has in order for us to strengthen the work of the Auditor-General.”
SCOPA Chairperson Mkhuleko Hlengwa
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