Lindiwe Sisulu criticises Ramaphosa, insists he must step aside

Tourism Minister Lindiwe Sisulu has criticised President Cyril Ramaphosa’s leadership and reiterated her call that he must lead by example and step aside, pending the outcome of investigations into the Phala Phala farm robbery scandal.

Sisulu said she had noted utterances attributed to Presidency spokesperson Vincent Magwenya in his response to her call this week that Ramaphosa should extricate himself and let the investigation take its cause.

Magwenya was quoted as saying the Phala Phala farm scandal was under investigation and “you would expect cabinet members to know better that we allow the investigations to be concluded before any pronouncements are made.”

Criticizing Ramaphosa

Magwenya further claimed that Sisulu’s criticism of Ramaphosa “is a reflection of her own performance”, Sisulu’s spokesperson Steve Motale said.

“Before making such outlandish remarks, Magwenya would do well to familiarise himself with Minister Sisulu’s impeccable track record in all government portfolios she has occupied.”

“For someone claiming to speak on behalf of the Head of State to ignore this and choose to be a propagandist to boost his principal’s political fortunes is a scandal of monumental proportions,” Motale said.

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Lindiwe Sisulu’s criticism of Ramaphosa is purely motivated by his poor performance as leader of the African National Congress (ANC), Motale said.

“In fact, her criticism is not unique. President Ramaphosa’s three predecessors have publicly expressed disappointment with his performance as president of the ANC and the country.”

ANC in intensive care

“One of the primary reasons Minister Sisulu is contesting President Ramaphosa in the upcoming ANC’s elective conference is precisely this dismal performance by President Ramaphosa as head of the ANC that has seen the party disbanding all its leagues representing an essential aspect of its ongoing existence.”

Lindiwe Sisulu deplores that the ANC, as a party under Ramaphosa’s leadership, has failed to take the adopted resolutions seriously, Motale said.

“Under his leadership, the movement finds itself in the proverbial intensive care unit. It is an administration that has entrenched the nonpayment of its staff and also an organisation that has shown itself not to care about the plight of its workers.”

“To have a sitting president accused of such horrible crimes does not bode well for the ANC. To make matters worse, the president has refused to take the ANC into [his] confidence on this matter, seeing this as his issue, while the ANC suffers undeniable reputational damage for his actions or inactions,” Motale added.

Engaging ANC leadership

The ANC elective season affords nominees and contenders the privilege of engaging in the party’s leaders’ performance with the organisation’s health and mandate as central, Motale said.

“Therefore, Magwenya must explain why he, as a government spokesperson, finds comfort in straying into organisational matters on an ANC election, albeit in his capacity of SA’s presidential spokesperson,” Motale said.

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